Back in 2023, Disney conducted a survey of a thousand parents in the
uk, and they found that more than half of these parents were concerned
that their children's curiosity was in fact declining and as was their
fascination about the world around them.
As educators, we've been witnessing this decline for some time now.
What's causing this decline and.
What can we do about it?
We are quick to point the finger at one thing or another, but I actually
think there are several things that play a part in this decline.
Firstly, the one thing that papers all appear to agree on is
that this decline of curiosity is linked to dopamine being depleted.
So it's obvious then that the question that we should be asking is, how
and why is dopamine being depleted.
Now a paper by the National Institute of Health, which I'll link for you in the
show notes concluded that the factors that reduce dopamine are the following,
right at the top is excessive screen time, sleep deprivation, uh, poor diet.
And that's one that's high in fat and sugar, which inhibits healthy dopamine
signaling, low sunlight exposure.
And there are also some rare genetic disorders that reduce functional dopamine.
Now, when it comes to the reduction of curiosity, a, a study in Science
Direct, which I will also link for you.
Uh, they concluded that this depleted or reduced dopamine disrupts the brain's
reward prediction system, which in turn reduces the motivation to explore and
to learn, or seek out new information.
Dopamine is actually the driving force that converts the potential for , new
knowledge and information into a reward signal when our levels are low.
In other words, when we don't perceive that there's much reward, the signal is
weakened, and that leads to curiosity, decline, and increased apathy.
How does depleted dopamine actually manifest?
Well, the research tells us that it manifests as impulsivity,
inattention, fatigue,
poor mood regulation and a constant search for stimulation.
Is this ringing any bells for you?
We've all seen those videos online of a child losing it when
screens are taken away from them.
It's actually really sad to look at, and we've all seen
children's inability to focus.
Their in attentiveness and their low levels of energy.
This my friends, is what screens have done, but it's not only screens.
As I will touch on later, what we've created is a generation of addicts that
don't get enough time outside, that don't get enough sunlight, that don't get
enough exercise, that often eat poorly.
Add in front of a device so there's no awareness or appreciation
even of the foods they're eating.
And that's even another story.
But it's actually not as simple as just blaming technology, which obviously
schools and parents provide for children, but curiosity also requires effort.
Not just on the child's part, but on our part too.
We are all born innately curious.
Children seek out learning through questions and wondering.
That's why there are so many questions when they're little, but if we don't
provide the opportunities for them to go outside in nature, where they
can play, where they can explore,
where they can wander around, where they can observe, where they can ask questions.
There will be no new stimuli to stimulate those dopamine neurons to
initiate exploration and curiosity.
Things like reading.
Research.
These require effort and the brain calculates the effort required isn't
worth the reward, and then you have reduced curiosity driven exploration.
In a nutshell.
Low dopamine levels make the world seem less exciting, and the effort
to learn just feels too much.
And so the brain moves into apathy.
By the way, I have a free e guide that shows you exactly how to nurture
curiosity easily in young children, and it even comes with 10 curiosity
starters that you can use at any time.
I leave a link for you in the show notes, or if you're on YouTube, there'll
be a link for you in the description.
So how do we as parents and educators then ensure that our children have high
levels of dopamine and that they remain curious and interested in learning
because isn't that our end game?
Well, I actually think the first point is obvious, and we've already stated it.
We have to remove screens from children.
No child in early childhood needs a screen.
And I would even argue that we need to teach them all the foundational
skills, using books, using pencils and paper before we even consider
introducing or providing screens.
And I know it's very hard for a child who has lots of screen time
to then even be interested in reading or sustaining an interesting reading
or doing puzzles or coloring or drawing or even listening to you.
We cannot argue against the findings that are coming out thick and
fast, and I think giving a child a screen is a bit like giving them a
regular dose of crack cocaine, and so it's not hard to remove screens.
You are the adult.
We are all the adults.
We are in charge, and so just don't go there in the first place.
Secondly, we need children to get outside.
We need to make sure that they're getting enough time
outside to explore on their own.
Don't be tempted by the way to provide elaborate equipment.
Keep things simple.
Allow children to be bored a little and to create their own play.
To come up with creative ways to solve problems and make fairy gardens and just
use their imagination and pretend play.
Thirdly, this is a big bug bear for me.
The content that children learn, the curriculum needs to be challenging
enough to provide that reward system for when they succeed.
Now, it goes without saying that if children are spending all their days
at school on a Chromebook, on an iPad, there's gonna be very little inclination
to complete the work that you and I set.
Nevermind doing it well.
Our brains are wired to grow and learn and to make new neural
pathways through challenge.
Why do you think that computer games have different levels
and challenges to complete?
That's what keeps them on there.
It's the same with gamified learning.
They're always trying to get to the next level to collect the coins or
the jewels or whatever it might be.
They haven't actually learned anything, children wouldn't be able to even explain
to you what they just learned on that game because they were only concerned
with getting to the next level and chasing that target and getting the reward.
And this brings me to the dumbing down of the curriculum and the
education system in general.
Yes.
As teachers we talk about the overloaded curriculum, but that's
because the curriculum is just filled with shallow nonsense.
Especially the humanities curriculum and the sciences curriculum.
There's repetition year after year with children practically learning
the same thing with just a little bit more challenge each year.
And the reason I can say this with confidence, is now that I'm
teaching in a classical tradition, a classical curriculum, I can tell
you that in the classical curriculum
children are expected to do more, to go deeper, and they
really are capable as well.
They are being stretched and they enjoy it because their
brains are wired for challenge.
But of course, it also helps that most classical schools, in
including my own, are device free.
Also, if you expect very little from children, you're going
to get very little in return.
We need to set high expectations for children.
That's the challenge that their brains thrive on, and I would urge you to look
at your curriculum, which by the way, is only a guide and you make it your own.
Inject a little bit of challenge into it with the learning
experiences that you design.
And lastly, I would say this notion of compliance-based teaching isn't doing
anything for children's curiosity.
Giving children worksheet after worksheet just to keep them busy so that we can
say that, oh, we've covered the material.
And children we can see in their books that they've done the learning.
That's not learning.
Just because a child has their head down and they're quiet
doesn't mean they're learning.
There's nothing wrong with a worksheet, but you have to be
discerning in what it's doing.
What is its function?
What are you trying to teach with it?
And one of the things that I now love is narration and recitation
in the classical tradition.
It's something obviously quite new to me, but I've already seen its enormous value.
Now, if you don't know this because you're not in the classical
education system, recitation is the act of children speaking allowed.
Either they're memorizing facts, they're memorizing, um,
scripture or poetry or speeches to demonstrate mastery and eloquence.
A narration is when we ask students to retell what we have just read to them,
or what we have, or what they have just learned or what we've just taught them.
And I do this all the time, even with my kindies, when I ask children
to retell me a story that I've just read to them in their own words.
Obviously for very young children, they need prompting, but it's an
amazing strategy for really checking, for understanding, and one that
I would encourage all educators, even if you don't teach in a
classical system, to use, in fact.
I hope to share more about classical education with you and how it
aligns with inquiry and wonder, and questioning and developing the
whole child in some future episodes.
Now, I have a free guide, as I mentioned before, with 10 curiosity starters
that you can use at any time to nurture children's natural curiosity and
encourage them to wonder and think, and of course to keep that natural
innate curiosity alive and burning.
I'll leave a link for you in the show notes if you're listening on the podcast.
And if you're on YouTube, the link will be in the description.
Now before I go, would you please do me the honor of subscribing to the show?
And sharing this episode with a friend or colleague that will
really help to grow the show.
Don't forget to get your free guide in the link, in the
description or in the show notes.
Thanks for being here today, and until next time, be blooming curious.