The Dynamic Learner Platform (DLP)

The DLP is a digital tool that supports metacognitive conversations between student and advisor to develop deep, personal understanding of how the student learns. Built on promising principles from psychology, cognitive science, and education, the questions and strategies were developed in partnership with researchers and educators at Breck. Leveraging curriculum designed for Breck’s Lower and Middle Schoolers to pull back the curtain on learning and develop a toolbox of learning strategies, the DLP is used by our Upper School students.

How the DLP works!

Students answer a series of “like me” and “not like me” questions about themselves as learners.

• Their answers create a radar profile that visualizes their strengths and growth edges.

• Each skill has an associated set of strategies that students can select and try with the guidance of their advisor.

• Schools can share a parent report that provides the radar profile and strategies selected.

• The DLP is web-based and platform agnostic.

• A series of push notifications keep strategies top of mind and an AI companion provides encouragement and problem solving.

What is Dynamic Learning all about?

Learning is complicated. There are many factors that allow you to learn. Everyone’s profile is unique and always changing given that no one brain is exactly the same and our brains are always changing. At any given moment we have current strengths as learners and current opportunities for growth depending on the content, task, and the learning environment. It’s for that reason that it’s essential that learners develop not only a knowledge of these current strengths and opportunities but also a “toolkit” of strategies that help learners leverage their strengths to help strengthen their opportunities for growth. 

The concept of “current” is crucial to understanding the dynamic nature of learning and better represents a student at any given moment. We know so much more about learning and one foundational concept is neuroplasticity which is the term used to describe the brain’s ability to change and adapt throughout a person's life. This means that the brain can literally rewire itself in response to new experiences and challenges. This is why it is possible for people to learn new skills, even in old age. The complex reality of being a student means that you could be confident in your ability to remember what is on the Spanish test until a friend looks at you funny in the hallway and suddenly, your strong memory and ability to focus are gone and cognitive energy is spent instead on processing the possible meaning behind that “look.”

Here are some of the things that students need to know about neuroplasticity:

• The brain is constantly changing. Even when we are sleeping, our brains are still making new connections.

• The more we use a skill, the stronger the neural pathways for that skill become.This is why retrieval practice is so important.

• Stress can hinder neuroplasticity, so it is important to find ways to manage stress.