Executive functioning (EF) skills are those capacities that enable a person to engage in successful independent purposeful behaviour. It is, therefore, a set of mental processes that play a crucial role in regulating and controlling behaviour and thinking, forming the cornerstones of human intelligence.
EF skills can be conceptualised as falling into two broad domains: Thinking skills (mental control) and doing skills (self-regulation)
Thinking Skills: consist of the mental processes used to analyse information and solve problems encompassing:
- Working Memory: the capacity to temporarily hold and manipulate information in mind, a vital skill for problem-solving and reasoning
- Cognitive/Mind Flexibility: the ability to adjust to changing conditions and switch between tasks is essential for adapting to new information and situations.
- Metacognition and Reflection: the ability to reflect on one’s experiences and thinking processes and adjust them to improve learning and problem-solving.
- Critical thinking: the ability to evaluate information to form a judgement
- Creativity: the ability to generate novel and innovative ideas and solutions
- Reasoning: the ability to use reason to draw conclusions based on evidence.
Doing Skills: involve the self-regulation and inhibitory control skills needed to complete goal-oriented intellectual tasks and encompass:
- Attention Control: The ability to focus, filter distractions, maintain focus, think before acting, regulate emotions, and suppress impulsive responses.
- Behavioural Control: the ability to reflect on behaviour, thoughts and emotions and make adjustments as necessary.
- Task Initiation, Planning and Organising: the goal-directed planning and action needed to complete tasks without procrastination.
- Monitoring and Evaluation: The ability to monitor and evaluate one’s performance, including detecting errors and making adjustments as needed.
- Goal-Directed Persistence/Determination: The ability to work towards a goal despite distractions, frustration, or temptations to give up.
Executive functioning skills help people to engage in goal-directed behaviour, solve problems, make decisions, organise, plan, prioritise, attend, initiate tasks and inhibit responses, persevere on tasks, regulate emotions, shift thought frameworks, and conceptualise/manage time. All skills that play a critical role in academic and life success.
It is important to note that these executive functions develop and mature throughout childhood and into early adulthood. Executive functioning skills are teachable skills that can be developed and improved through practice and training.
How do we develop and train Executive Functioning skills?
At Liberté, the development and improvement of EF skills are supported through instructional practices and activities that challenge and engage the learner, such as problem-solving tasks, critical thinking exercises, and group projects and provide learners with the freedom to take control of their learning and making the most of their educational experiences. This ultimately enables them to focus on learning and knowledge acquisition, leading to higher performance in assessments, tests and assignments.
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