Many children are frustrated and find schoolwork difficult because they do not have the cognitive skills required. For these children, additional schoolwork, homework or special attention (not specifically correcting the underlying cognitive skill weakness) will simply compound the frustration and intensify the learning difficulty.

Most schools do not allocate the funds or the time to provide the appropriate one-on-one training required by students struggling from weak learning skills. In addition, educators must teach curriculum at a pace that is impossible for students with underdeveloped learning skills to assimilate and process. Those students are unable to keep up with their peers and fall further and further behind. This often results in a lifelong learning struggle.

Stages of Learning

Learning is a complex process and develops through stages. It build on innate abilities that are inherited and genetically coded at birth. Very few of us learn at anywhere near our maximum capacity as established by our innate skills. This is why both study and practice rewards most people with growth in learning and performance. The flow of our learning development progresses through the stages of sensory and motor skills, then cognitive abilities and finally results in the ability to assimilate formal instruction. A deficiency in any one stage can result in problems in the following stages that depend upon it.

Schools, government programs and special education all focus on academic instruction. Unfortunately, they seldom recognize that not all students possess the fundamental cognitive skills required to efficiently process and understand information presented through academic instruction. Without the appropriate cognitive skills in place, increased academic instruction and tutoring does nothing to improve learning ability. It accomplishes little in its effort to help the students learn. A closer look at the stages of learning will reveal the importance of cognitive skills development.

Innate Abilities

At the foundation of the learning process are a student's innate abilities. These represent the genetically determined abilities (and limits) we posses at birth that we inherited from our parents. Mozart certainly processed a greater innate capacity (that allowed him to create music) than can be said for most of us, but met of us can improve our musical ability with practice. Our upward limits are defined by innate abilities, but how near we come to performing at those upper limits id determined by other elements necessary to learning.

Sensory/Motor Skills

Sensory and motor skills develop on the foundation of our innate abilities. Sensory skills are those such as vision, hearing and touch. THey are responsible for receiving information. Motor skills relate to muscles and movement, and include crawling, walking, running, handwriting and speaking. Motor skills give expression to the information our senses receive and process.

Both sensory and motor skills are partially determined by genetic code and partly learned through repetitive interaction with the environment. These skills, in almost everyone, can be improved with proper practice. This fact is the basis for athletic and music instrument practice, physical therapy, and other such performance enhancement efforts.

Cognitive Skills

Our cognitive abilities allow us to process the sensory information we collect. These include our ability to analyze, evaluate, retain information, recall experiences, make comparisons and determine action. Although cognitive skills have an innate component, the bulk of cognitive skills are learned. When this development does not occur as designed (for a variety of possible reasons), cognitive weaknesses are the result. These weaknesses diminish a student's capacity to learn, and are difficult to corrected without specific and appropriate intervention. Like sensory and motor skills, with the right training, cognitive skills an be practiced and improved. Changes in cognitive ability can be seen dramatically in cases where a brain injury affects a certain cognitive area. The correct therapy can actually "rewire" a patient's brain and cognitive function can be restored or enhanced. This is also true in students. Weak cognitive skills that hinder academic learning) can be strengthened, and normal cognitive skills can be enhanced to increase ease and performance in learning.

Instruction

Receiving instruction is the last and most diverse level of learning. This includes academic subjects that are not intuitive, nor likely to develop on their own, such as algebra, reading and typing. They are the result of formal education and rely on the strength of a student's underlying cognitive skills if they are to be "learned" successfully and easily. The knowledge base of each subject can be expanded, but without the proper foundation of cognitive skills, academic progress can be a difficult and frustrating struggle.

Cognitive Skills are Trainable and Can Be Improved

As individuals grow and as academic challenges increase in complexity, it becomes important that the underlying skills supporting those challenges are in place and functioning. Strong cognitive skills are the key to strong academic performance. Without them in place, it is impossible for an individual with learning or reading difficulties to perform to their potential.

Learning Skills Unlimited programs (PACE and Master the Code) focus on the training and developing the underlying cognitive skills required to excel academically. Through accurate testing and a large selection of skill-specific training exercises, the programs are tailored specifically to overcome a student's individual weakness. THe training is delivered in a one-on-one environment to produce rapid, noticeable and measurable changes. It is only after and individual's cognitive skill set is in place and functioning effectively that they will be able to successfully conquer the challenges of learning.