The BR English Program: English Language Instruction and Brain Education

BR English is one of the many organizations based on the principles of Brain Education. Through cooperative learning opportunities, BR English teachers use Brain Education principles and practices to help students learn and improve their English. In the process, students develop confidence in their ability to speak a foreign language, as well as making improvements in their physical, emotional, and social health.

While some students attend after-school BR English programs, others are fortunate to have the program in their school.

On Friday, I met with Danielle Little, to find out more about the organization and her work. Danielle is on the Education and Program Development teams. As part of her work, she trains teachers, provides workshops, and promotes and develops curriculum for the BR English program.

Recently, the South Korean government has put a greater emphasis on English-language education so whole school boards are looking for effective tools to provide English-language instruction.

Busan, the second largest city in Seoul, which is already implementing Brain Education in its schools, has recently shown interest in adding BR English to its programs. In addition, the BR English program provides a model for English-language instruction that can be used by countries around the world.

For more information about BR English:

http://www.brenglish.co.kr/common/html/english/english.asp#d

Brain Education Department at the Global Forum on Education

Faculty and students from the Brain Education department at UBE attended the Global Forum on Education in Seoul November 27-29, 2008. The International Conference was co-hosted by the Korean Educational Research Association and Seoul National University. Many of the students in the Brain Education department are teachers using the Brain Education program in their classrooms and schools and, as part of their graduate program, doing research about its applications.

The campus of Seoul National University against a backdrop of beautiful late-fall mountains.

Seoul National University's history is interesting, parallelling Korea's recent history, from independence in 1946 through the Korean War to the present: http://www.useoul.edu/about/ab0102.jsp

After the conference, faculty and students met to discuss the conference, to enjoy dinner together, and later...


Noraebang!

Dahn Mu Do

On Friday, I attended a Dahn Mu Do class at the Sinsa Dahn Mu Do Center in Seoul. Master Kang, the Head Instructor at the center, spent some time in Canada as an instructor at the HSP Ranch, Dahn's Canadian Meditation Center, and he helped to renovate the new Burlington Dahn Yoga Center.

In Canada and the U.S., Dahn Mu Do (or Dahn Hak Do) is offered at Dahn Mu Do Centres or, as is the case in Burlington, at the Dahn Yoga Centre. I happen to know the instructor at the Burlington Center--he is a great instructor! Marek got his black belt after doing an intense 21-day training with Master Kang at HSP Ranch and has since continued his training in the GTA and taught at the centre.

Dahn Mu Do is a challenging but gentle form of Brain Education that is similar to Tai Chi. By practising Dahn Mu Do, I have improved my balance, the flexibility in my joints, the strength in my lower body, and my confidence. Through breathing, posture-holding, and other exercises, I find my mind becomes calmer and I am better able to control my energy, emotions and stress.

Dahn Mu Do is an energy-based non-combative martial art which can be used to heal and transform both body and mind. People of all ages and in any condition can do Dahn Mu Do. In Texas, a group of juvenile offenders benefited from Dahn Mu Do classes through the Dahn Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that helps to bring Dahn to the community:

http://www.dahnfoundation.org/L3-Programs-JuvProbation.html

Here's a video of a demonstration by Master Kang:

http://tvpot.daum.net/clip/ClipView.do?clipid=9102125&q=%EA%B0%95%ED%83%9C%ED%9B%88&searchType=0&sort=wtime&svctype=1

For more information about Dahn Mu Do:
http://www.dahnyoga.com/dahnmudo/

Brain Education and the Development of Global Human Resources

From November 4-6, 2008, the third annual Global Human Resources Forum was held in Seoul under the theme of "Creative Talents for Global Collaboration". This forum facilitated the exchange of best practices from all over the world for developing creative and global human resources with a focus on innovative approaches to education and human resource development and greater collaboration between organizations, companies, and governments to ensure shared global prosperity. Keynote speakers included Jack Welch, former CEO of GE.

A session on the Development of Brain Science and Maximization of Creativity included presentations by Dr. Hee Sup Shin, one of the first National Scientists of Korea, Dr. Gruzelier, from the Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths, University of London, and Ilchi Lee, the founder of Brain Education and President of the University of Brain Education.

In his presentation, Ilchi Lee summarized his work over the past 30 years, developing programs to help people restore their health and happiness and ability to be more creative and productive. He acknowledged Dr. Gruzelier's research on the ways neurofeedback can teach people to manage their brainwaves and improve their creativity, musical ability, and other abilities.

Ilchi Lee suggested, though, that we have the ability to change our brainwaves without the use of this technology and offered Brain Wave Vibration as a simple, effective exercise to affect our brainwaves, our hormones, and thus, our emotions.

"You don't have to be a brain scientist to use your brain well. Everyone with a brain can make use of their brain," Ilchi Lee said. He emphasized that choice is the first step to using the brain well and offered Music, Action, and Message as key elements to use in managing our brainwaves and our lives. He then led the session participants in Brain Wave Vibration to emphasize the importance of taking action.

Ilchi Lee shared the recent results of research done by Dr. Hideo Arita at Toho University in Japan on the effects of Brain Wave Vibration. The studies showed that after 15 minutes of Brain Wave Vibration, participants showed increases in blood flow to the brain, in alpha waves (brainwaves associated with deep relaxation and enhanced creativity), and serotonin levels (low levels of serotonin have been related to depression). Participants also showed improved concentration and on a psychological test, increased vitality, decreased tension, anxiety, and fatigue.

Ilchi Lee described how Brain Education as an approach and Brain Wave Vibration as a specific methodology are being used to help improve the well-being and productivity of individuals and organizations in schools, communities, and companies around the world. In addition, Brain Education is creating a new professional qualification for people who are interested in helping others learn to use their brains well called a Brain Management Consultant.

Ultimately, Ilchi Lee offered Brain Education as an educational approach that creates hope and cultivates the HongIk spirit, which means one who works for the benefit of all humanity, in the development of future leaders and places of work around the world.

21-Day Miracle Training

Today, I started 21-Day Miracle training again. This training is a brain-based self-improvement program designed to help create new habits. By focusing on one goal for 21 days, you are giving your brain a chance to establish connections in support of your goal.

When this program was first introduced on http://www.ilchi.com/, I used it to help strengthen my body. For 21-days, I did running, pushups, and other exercises to help make me stronger. When I finished, I started another 21-days of training with the same goal, but different activities, to help me achieve it.

Lately, I have gotten away from doing this. After watching one of Ilchi Lee's lectures, I realized that if I can make my life a series of 21-Day trainings, I can change myself a lot and create many miracles. Otherwise, I will just keep thinking about the changes I want to make and not actually do anything about them.

The first step in 21-day Miracle Training is to choose a goal. Lately, I have been very sleepy in the morning, so my goal is to be able to wake up at 7:30 every morning with lots of energy :).

It is important that a goal contain language that reflects what you want to accomplish, not what you don't want to accomplish, because what you tell your brain will manifest itself. So, for example, instead of "Get rid of my back pain", you could choose "Have a healthy back."

The next step is to choose three rules that will help you achieve your goal. If you ask your brain, the answer will usually come to you very quickly (your brain knows what you need to do--we're just not always listening :). My three rules are:

1. Do Jung-Choong Breathing every day for 30 minutes (to help accumulate energy).
2. Don't drink coffee or eat four hours before going to sleep (so my body and brain can have a restful sleep).
3. Go to bed before 1 a.m. (this may seem late but people stay up late here--there's something about the energy in Korea that makes it hard to go to bed early).

After creating your plan, it is good to record it and share it and your daily progress with one person or a community of people. This helps provide support for your plan, although as you'll experience, all of the motivation and will has to come from inside of you.

I recorded my goal and rules on ilchi.com and will be able to check my progress every day. There is also a journal to record your experiences of yourself during the training. If you're looking for inspiration from others, you can read the goals and rules others have chosen.

Many people have created groups on ilchi.com around goals that they have in common. So, for example, there are groups for education, volunteer and outreach activity, self development, family and relationships, health & wellness, and young people. There's even a group for members of the Burlington Dahn Yoga Centre!

I've heard that many educators in the New York area have been introduced to this program through the Brain Education Teaching Workshops. They have used it to help use the positive experiences they had during the workshop to create positive habits in their classrooms and in their own lives. Great!

For more information about 21-day Miracle training, see:
http://www.ilchi.com/what-is-21m?/

Good luck creating new habits and miracles in your lives!

Maximizing Creativity with Brainwave Training

Today was an exciting day at UBE. Guest lecturer, Dr. John Gruzelier from Goldsmiths, University of London, presented on "Maximizing Creativity with EEG-Neurofeedback (Brain Wave) Training", a presentation he also made a few days earlier at the Global Human Resources Symposium in Seoul.

Neurofeedback is a technique that has been used successfully to treat epilepsy, ADHD, schizophrenia, substance use, and brain injury. While it has several clinical applications, Dr. Gruzelier's current focus is on using Neurofeedback to enhance optimal performance in non-clinical populations.

What Dr. Gruzelier and his colleagues have found is that through Neurofeedback training, or through training people to slow down their brain waves using a neurofeedback system, they can improve their performance, including their creativity. This has shown to be true for both novice and expert artists, including instrumentalists, vocalists, and dancers. Dr. Gruzelier emphasized that anyone can develop their creativity and abilities through this technique and others.

The state induced by slow wave training has been termed hypnogogia and is the state between wake and sleep. This is the state that can be experienced by doing Ji Gam or Energy Meditation, a technique used in Brain Education training. Many scientists, writers, and others have documented the creative insight they have experienced while in this state. Images of the brain show that there is increased connectivity between the left and right sides of the brain.



Earlier in the afternoon, Dr. Gruzelier was also an honoured guest at a ceremony to mark the beginning of construction of a new Brain Education building at UBE. Dr. Gruzelier spoke about the important role that UBE and KIBS play in providing research that supports the benefits of Brain Education so that it can be shared around the world. He commended Ilchi Lee for his work in Brain Science and for his spiritual leadership. Dr. Gruzelier noted that he shared in Ilchi Lee's goal of helping individuals develop the potential of their brains for peace.

Change Your Brain, Change Your Life

Change Your Brain, Change Your Life" is by Dr. Daniel Amen, a clinical neuroscientist, child and adolescent psychiatrist, and medical director of the Amen Clinic for Behavioural Medicine. In his work helping people apply mental health principles to their lives, he began to wonder why some people experienced positive change and others, none at all.

The answer came to him when he was introduced to brain SPECT imaging (imaging that detects blood flow and activity in the brain). These images showed functional differences in the brains of people with dementia, depression, schizophrenia, and head injuries as compared to "normal" brains. Also, before and after images showed how treatment with medication actually changed the physical functioning of the brain.

Dr. Amen started using SPECT studies to treat his patients and soon realized that treating patients according to the "abnormalities" in their brains could improve their lives. He used a combination of "prescriptions" depending on the area of the brain being targeted including exercise, nutrition, positive self-talk, changes to interactions with others, music, Biofeedback, and medication and witnessed positive changes in people's brains and in their lives.

His motivation to share the work that was being done at his clinic came from seeing many children, teenagers, and adults who had clear brain abnormalities whom society was just writing off as bad human beings.

To quote Dr. Amen:
"Seeing these scans caused me to challenge many of my basic beliefs about people, character, free will, and good and evil that had been ingrained in me".

"I believe it benefits almost everyone to know as much about how his or her own brain works as possible...Since the brain controls our behaviour, optimizing its function can help nearly anyone's ability to be more effective in life."

"We are far too quick to attribute people's actions to a bad character when the source of their actions may not be their choice at all, but a problem with brain physiology."

"The actual physical patterns of our brain have a dramatic impact on how we think, feel, and behave from moment to moment."

Dr. Amen makes the point that he is not encouraging everyone to get a brain scan, although this may be helpful for some people. What he is suggesting is that by understanding how our brain works, we can gain a deeper understanding of our feelings and behaviour and the feelings and behaviour of others.

Brain Education is a program created to help us understand and, as Dr. Amen says, "optimize the functioning" of our brains. First by sensitizing ourselves to our brain and body, we develop a greater awareness of the condition of both.

With this awareness, we can choose from a variety of "prescriptions" such as exercise, energy meditation, Brain Wave Vibration, and even laughing, that results in positive changes in our brains and in our lives.