Educators have long known that learning doesn’t end at graduation—it’s a lifelong journey. Today’s educators are acutely aware of this reality, and yet, many are grappling with what that looks amongst accelerating technologies and unpredictable future job markets.
For decades, organizations like the OECD, the World Health Organization, and the World Economic Forum have been examining these changing tides and have sought to provide frameworks from which to build effective educational practices. Models like the 4 Cs (Communication, Collaboration, Critical Thinking, and Creativity), and more recently the 6 Cs (adding Citizenship and Character), seek to provide educators with guidelines for future learning.
The message is consistent: while foundational skills are still important, they’re no longer enough. To prepare students to flourish in the 21st century, they need more than the foundational skills of reading, writing and mathematics. Students need to be flexible thinkers, strong teammates, and real-world problem solvers. These priorities are well-supported by research as well as emerging conversations in the education space globally.
What tends to be overlooked in most frameworks is that any skill or competency—be it academic or interpersonal—is grounded in the brain.
Whether students are learning to read fluently, solve a math problem, resolve a conflict, or persist through a challenge, their brain is managing it all. Core academic abilities—like decoding, numerical reasoning, and language comprehension—depend on specific neural systems. Likewise, higher-order functions such as decision-making, flexibility and emotional regulation are supported by the brain’s executive functioning networks.
Understanding that the brain is at the root of both academic success and personal growth shifts how educators approach teaching and learning. It also expands what is possible.
21st-century skills like communication, collaboration, and perseverance aren’t “soft skills”—they’re brain-based. They require the integration of multiple cognitive functions. Here are just some of the most critical within our brains:
Society puts enormous pressure on educators to provide opportunities for students to prepare for the future. With neuroscience, educators can do exactly that, and use a ‘cognitive lens’ to evolve their educational practice.
Through this lens, educators can distinguish skills from cognitive capacities.
Skills like problem-solving or reading comprehension are learned behaviors—they’re outcomes built over time through practice and instruction.
Cognitive capacities, on the other hand—such as attention, memory, or cognitive flexibility—are the mental systems that make those skills possible. They're the brain’s core operating tools.
Think of the brain as a toolbox: skills are what we build; cognitive capacities are the tools with which we build. Strengthening those foundational capacities doesn’t just improve one skill—it improves learning itself.
Thanks to decades of neuroscience research, we now know the brain is not fixed. Through a process called neuroplasticity, the brain can adapt, rewire, and grow in response to experience and effort—at any age. This means educators are not limited to just teaching content; they can actively shaping how students’ brains develop.
This scientific fact has huge implications. With a cognitive approach, students can improve their attention, memory, processing speed, and reasoning—the very qualities that drive academic and real-world success. It means that difficulties in learning aren’t signs of permanent limits, but rather opportunities for growth.
Just as physical education builds the body, cognitive training strengthens the brain. Programs designed to target specific cognitive functions—like attention and logical reasoning—can help all students thrive, including those who previously struggled with learning.
Evidence-based cognitive approaches, such as the Arrowsmith Program, use targeted mental exercises to strengthen networks in the brain. This approach doesn't simply compensate for a student’s challenges; it helps change the brain itself. Educators who integrate cognitive training into their schools report gains not just in academics, but in student confidence, engagement, and independence.
"Confidence levels were the first indicator that the Arrowsmith program was having an impact. Students who previously seemed shy or unengaged, were now making eye contact, voicing opinions, and speaking up. One parent shared that her son ordered his own meal at a restaurant for the first time after a few months in the program. My staff are noticing students speaking up and participating in class debates. “I am thinking more quickly and have more ideas,” she said."Marianne Vangoor
School Principal, Canada“Arrowsmith has been transformative for students at SEK International Schools. By improving fundamental learning processes, it has not only boosted academic performance but also enhanced students' confidence and engagement.”
Iván Martínez Pastor
General Director, Spain
Educators are in a powerful position to foster not just academic achievement, but lasting cognitive and personal growth. When educators apply a cognitive lens they can:
Embracing brain-based learning and cognitive development enables students to prepare not just for the next test, but for a lifetime of adaptability, purpose, and resilience.
If the brain is the foundation for learning, then supporting its growth should be central to education. As science continues to uncover the brain’s remarkable capacity for change, educators have a unique opportunity—and responsibility—to harness that knowledge.
Lifelong learning begins in the classroom. And with the right insights and tools, students can become not just better learners, but strong thinkers, collaborators, and leaders—ready for whatever the future holds.