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 TOPIC 1 CREATING QUALITY EARLY LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
Neurologists agree that the first eight years of a childÊs life are a critical time for brain development. Humans are born with a brain waiting to be interlinked into the complex texture of the mind. Some neurons in the brain are equipped before birth, but many remain to be programmed by early experiences. In the early years of life, experience affected by the surroundings makes childrenÊs brains work very hard. The brain develops more synapses and those synapses are used by these children to form strong connections. Young children who gained
experiences in their environment form more connections between synapses.
In a study on the effects of environment on young children, Romanian children that were raised in the orphanages were found to have thinner brain tissue in cortical areas linked to impulse control and attention. This study which was conducted at the University of Washington reported that children who began life in orphanages face a markedly elevated risk of developing ADHD. The studyÊs results showed that early childhood neglect may cause changes in brain structure which exhibited widespread reductions in cortical thickness across prefrontal, parietal, and temporal regions relative to community control subjects (see Figure 1.1). These reductions in cortical thickness are a neurodevelopmental mechanism explaining elevated ADHD symptoms among children exposed to orphanage rearing. This study explained why young children raised in orphanages environment tend to have attention ADHD about four or five times more often than those who are raised at home by their parents.
Figure 1.1: Differences in the cortical thickness of children in orphanages compared with children raised at home
Source: http://www.washington.edu/news/2014/10/14/orphanage-care-linked-to- thinner-brain-tissue-in-regions-related-to-adhd/
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