Implicit bias can have a huge influence on instructional racialization because it takes what you might think of a specific group of people and bases your opinions off of things you’ve seen others do with the same similarities. This can be bad if you assume that a specific group of students will act in a way based off of others with the same background have acted. This also shows that teachers need to have good cultural awareness in order to combat against this. (Hammond, 36). The brain uses culture to make sense of the world because they have default settings that make them respond to things in a specific way. This means that regardless of what we as humans want to think, there will always be something that makes you feel a specific way because of how our brains are hardwired. (Hammond, 37).

The brain is the hardware because it is considered to be the default setting because it consists of things we are born with or initially learn. This means that these are things that are more set in stone where as the the culture is seen as the software because it consists of things that you learn or want to be apart of. (Hammond, 37). The reptilian portion of the brain is considered to be the first layer which consists of the brain stem and cerebellum. The most important part of this inn the brain is that it keeps the body alive and that it controls specific functions within the body such as body temperature, breathing, blood pressure, and more. (Hammond, 37).The limbic region is an area of the brain that is right above reptilian brain and helps a person to manage and maintain their emotions. This region also has three different structures that help maintain these emotions and memories called the Thalamus, Hippocampus, and the amygdala. The thalamus dispatches communication for the brain, the hippocampus houses all of the knowledge as long term memory, and the amygdala helps with emotional processing. (Hammond, 40). 

It is important for teachers to know about the amygdala hijack because it triggers a persons flight or fight response.it can also cause all cognitive functions to come to a complete stop. If teachers know more about this, they will be able to better combat against the repercussions of this occurring. (Hammond, 40). The cortisol’s role within the brain is that it is a stress hormone. This cortisol is usually sent from lizard brain and can result in all cognitive thought within the brain to stop. (Hammond, 40). The neocortex is considered to be the newest part of the brain and is only about four million years old. It’s purpose is to use executive function to control what happens in the brain. The capacity of this portion of the brain seems to be endless because it is always able to take on new information that is sent to it. (Hammond, 40).

Cellular structures are related to intellective capacity because are what relay information back and fort within the human brain. These cellular structures are made up of gray matter which is able to continue to grow as time goes on. This allows for almost an unlimited amount of information to be transferred back and forth. (Hammond, 41). You can grow a students neuroplasticity by creating a neural pathway that connects all new information that is going into the brain. This allows for the information to be soon become long term because it is considered to be deeper learning. This allows learning to be smoother because it trains the brain to make these connections faster. (Hammond, 43). The pedagogy of poverty does not relate to developing intellectual capacity because it does not control wether or not a student has a capacity for learning. It could mean that these students might not have the proper resources in order to succeed but should not be based off of a students economic class.

The parasympathetic nerve is described as something that keeps ready for quick reactions to things that might happen such as an immediate response. The polyvogal nerve focuses on keeping contact with other humans. The sympathetic nerve mostly focuses on helping people satisfied and is usually followed by the release of dopamine. (Hammond, 44). When a student does not feel safe within the classroom, some of the usual side effects can consist of a student having a heightened heart rate, not thinking clearly, or being overly nervous. In order for students to repel these feelings, they need to release oxytocin which will help to relax their nerves. (Hammond, 44). 

Teachers can make the brain more open to learning by making an environment where students are not affect by things that negatively affect their nervous system. This could consist of things that will not make students nervous or wont put a halt to their learning. The six core design principles consist of minimal social threats, positive relationships, culture guides, attention, new and existing information, and brain growth. These principles can allow for individuals to have a deeper understanding of how the brain works and how it is affected by cultural influences since it is ever changing. (Hammond, 47).

One brain rule that resonated with me is where it talks about how the parasympathetic nerve is what causes our fight or flight response. I fee as though it resonated with me because you can see how much it heightens your senses in certain situations. Understanding the brain can help dependent learners become independent because knowing how some students might respond to certain situations can help you plan how to avid it. This will allow dependent learners to earn in a way that is comfortable and will help to ease their nerves. One question that I do have is does the nervous system respond differently when the brain is much older and how can the responses change depending on age? 

 

Hammond, Z. (2015). Culturally Responsive Teaching & the Brain: Promoting Authentic Engagement and Rigor Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.