All learning is active in the sense that a transition must be observed before something can be considered learned. Accepting learning definitions that are dependent on change and thus action necessitates dismissing the idea of passive learning. However, in the present era, the idea of passive learning has gained currency, and being educated has become equivalent to the mere accumulation of information. When people talk about passive learning, they usually refer to a situation in which the learner acts as a receiver without participating actively in the process of learning and the change. It is a one-way process wherein the learner is being “poured” with information regarding ‘what to think’ and ‘what to learn’ rather than ‘how to think’ and ‘how to learn’.

However, the need of 21st-century learners is to reiterate the components of ‘change’ and ‘action’ during the learning process. A child must be actively involved in the learning and concepts should not be transmitted from teacher to child but constructed by the child as an active participant. Children should be provided with an opportunity to process any new information, consider it further in the context of self and how it relates to their thought process, or even go further to consider its numerous real-life applications. Learning should be about creating as many as “aha!” moments for our children, where the epicentre of discovery and synthesis of new information resting inside the child is the main focus.

To implement dynamic and interactive models of learning, teaching pedagogy went about a change and started using the learning cycle as a model of instruction. These models are considered superior to “transmission-based” learning in which children are passive receivers of knowledge from their teachers. These learning cycles follow a 5 E’s process, including Engagement (mentally engaging children with an enquiry or activity), Exploration (children carrying out hands-on activities to make sense of a concept, or creating inquiry-based experience), Explanation (facilitator teacher explaining the concepts by building upon the skills introduced in previous phases), Elaboration (children applying their understanding of concepts while exploring new skills and reinforcing existing skills), and Evaluation (encouraging children to assess their understanding and abilities).

The learning process in game-based learning

Game-based learning is an active learning technique that uses characteristics and principles of game-play embedded within the learning activities to promote engagement, motivation to learn, and development of cognitive and social skills. The core concept behind game-based learning translates into a process of active learning. Children have to be actively involved in accomplishing goals, choosing appropriate actions, and experiencing the consequences of those actions. This form of learning enhances a child’s critical and analytical thinking, logical reasoning, experimentation through trial-and-error, converting the trial-and-error process into a system, and problem-solving skills. Games that involve multiple players can further promote collaborative thinking, empathy, and other socio-emotional life skills in children.

Konshius is a game-based learning program for nurturing the thinking abilities and learning potential of children. It is the only platform that experientially develops thinking about ‘how to think’ and creates learning about ‘how to learn’ in children using educational games and toys. Konshius advocates active learning, which keeps the child at the centre of the process and enables facilitators to structure their interactions with the learner while game-playing with the child. The science and design of Konshius games takes the child through 4 levels of learning: moving the child from unconscious incompetence to subconscious competence stage. (You can read more about the 4 levels of learning in blog – https://konshius.com/enabling-steam-learning-through-4-levels-of-learning-at-konshius/) However, different from the conventional teaching pedagogy, Konshius delivers this dynamic learning through a unique 5 stages process conducted between the learner (the children) and an adult (parent or a teacher) as a facilitator.

1. Engage – This is the stage where the focus is to align all conscious thoughts of the learner on the game and excitement through interactions has to be built. The objective is to align learners’ thoughts and attention to the game by discussing game elements, characters in the game, learner’s relationship with these characters, game-play rules, etc.
2. Explore – Once the engagement has been built and game-play rules are known, allowing the learner for a free-flow play of the game, as per the learner’s current knowledge. The objective is to allow the learner’s current thinking process to surface while playing the game activities. So, at this stage, it is imperative to allow the learner to experiment with hit and trial, discover mistakes, construct hypotheses, etc.
3. Reflect – A joint guided exercise between the learner and the adult – enabling the learner to reflect upon the thinking process used while playing the game activity during the ‘Explore’ stage. Asking questions to make the learner see a better or different way of thinking about and thinking through the hypotheses, mistakes, trial method, etc. of the ‘Explore’ stage. Here, asking probing questions that enable the learner to verbalize thinking behind the actions taken by the learner during the ‘Explore’ stage is achieved. This verbalization opens the doors for ‘new ways of thinking’ as suggestions and helps in the rewiring of neural pathways.
4. Assimilate – This is the stage where an adult and the learner are jointly applying the ‘new ways of thinking created in the ‘Reflect’ stage. Now, the learner is able to achieve desired outcomes of the game without doing any hit-and-trial and can articulate actions, and reasons for those actions, before taking the action. The process of verbalization initiated in the ‘Reflect’ stage is now used for ‘speaking about what the learner is thinking before taking an action.
5. Innovate – Now, as a facilitator, discussions are initiated on real-life examples where the learner can apply the newly learned way of thinking. This will help the learner find value in new thinking ability for being useful in real-life situations. This will further strengthen the internal process of thinking about the application of any new learning, by relating any new learning to real life.

So, ultimately, the goal across these 5 stages is to create a safe and secure space in the learner’s mind so that they feel free to do hit and trial at first, and later, don’t feel judged when verbalizing what thought process or structure they used for taking actions. These 5 stages allow the learner to progress from a mere free-play to structured game playing. Each of these 5 stages is critical to the task at hand.

The interaction during the Reflection and Assimilation stage is at the heart of new learning. So, after prompting the learner to verbalize the thought process or structure that led to action(s), further questions are asked to encourage reflection. This methodology can be used to build a closer bond with the learner where both parties are sharing thoughts and not judging each other based on actions and behaviour. The facilitator and the learners jointly identify those areas that require some more profound conscious work. The situations where the learner could not succeed first and later could, through new ways of thinking, develop this lifelong confidence in the learner that any failure can be converted into success by changing the way of thinking or approach.

At Konshius our sole focus is to use thinking games and learning systems for promoting direct development of Cognitive, Emotional & Social Thinking Skills without using any academic subject. It is our endeavour to make this learning effective for all learners irrespective of their current academic performance or their socio-economic-cultural background.

The STEAM approach allows for greater understanding, creative thinking, and holistic education in the classroom as the Arts and STEM subjects complement each other. It gives children tools and methods to explore new and creative ways of problem-solving, innovating and creating interconnection between multiple fields. It enables children to learn 21st-century skills including critical and creative thinking skills, building curiosity, persistence, problem-solving, resourcefulness, teamwork, collaboration and confidence. STEAM-model based education is crucial for the next generation’s advancement as they will need these transferable skills to carve a career in the future. STEAM education helps children of all backgrounds cultivate application-oriented innovative mindsets and think creatively in whichever field they will go to make a career in life.

Teaching is what the teacher does. Learning is what the student does! Thus, the baton of effective learning has to be in children’s hands. However, providing the optimal environment and building on their cognitive processes is of teacher’s.

What is cognitive learning?

Cognitive learning is an engaging and active process that utilizes the senses in a beneficial manner with a focus on lifelong learning. It teaches how to use our brain to relate new knowledge to existing ideas; by focusing on nurturing potential and improving memory, concentration, retention, etc. Traditional learning focuses on memorization, while cognitive learning focuses on achieving mastery of the subject through higher-order thinking skills of reflection, assimilation and application of knowledge to real-life situations.

According to Bloom’s Taxonomy and Andreson & Krathwahl Bloom’s revised taxonomy on Thinking skills, 250+ thinking skills need to be developed in each child through various academic and non-academic content. These ‘how to think’ skills can be categorized into lower and higher-order thinking skills. Remembering and understanding being lower-order thinking levels that depend upon the learner’s ability to memorize information and make sense of it. From these levels, the learner has to proceed to higher-order thinking skills wherein children infer and draw connections between information from different sources, use their judgment to analyze and evaluate the knowledge they have learned, and generate inquisitive, novel ideas. They proceed to a level where they know how to think about their own thinking.

The Konshius program has a structure of progress that makes it a scientific curriculum on developing various higher-order thinking skills and nurturing children’s learning potential.

Every session that a child takes with Konshius follows a 4 level scientific learning process: Unconscious Incompetence, Conscious Incompetence, Conscious Competence, & Subconscious Competence. This process provides insight into the psychological states involved with learning a new skill. This process makes the progression from not knowing ‘what you don’t know’ to a stage where the application of newly learnt skill becomes a natural habit. This journey of transiting from ‘not knowing’ to ‘knowing to apply’ is set forth as follows:

• Level 1: Unconscious Incompetence (I do know what I do not know) – At this level, the child is not aware of the existence or relevance of a particular skill area. The child may also be unaware of a lack of concerned skill. Howsoever one may try to explain the utility or absence of that skill, the child may not show any changes within because the child is not aware of the ‘need’ of that skill or concept as of now.
  
  Role of Konshius – Spark interest and engagement by creating the need for application of that skill or ability in the game-playing environment. Spark motivation to learn the new skill due to its benefits in improving a child’s effectiveness in game playing.

• Level 2: Conscious Incompetence (I know what I do not know) – At this level, the child becomes consciously aware of lack or incompetency in a particular skill, concept, or process. This is a crucial stage as this awareness of gap or limitation in the specific skill area needs to come about in a ‘natural’ and ‘motivating’ manner so that the child does not feel any negative emotions for lacking in the skill.
  
  Role of Konshius – Through the help of engaging games and activities design, the child feels intrinsically excited to use the existing knowledge to play the game activities. Most children use hit and trial methods at this stage which reaches a point where the child is not able to solve the activity, even after trying various hit and trial approaches. As the game creates an engagement, the inability to solve a situation generates a huge willingness to learn and overcome the missing skill.

• Level 3: Conscious Competence (I know how to do it, but I have to test its application) – The learner can now perform the skills reliably at will; however, they will need to concentrate and think to perform the skill in more complex activities. The child will now consciously make an effort to extend and refine the knowledge, keep reflecting on self-action, which is facilitated by various mechanisms.
  
  Role of Konshius– The child’s thinking facilitator and a trainer will support in reflection on skill acquired and actions taken to apply the newly learnt skill. This is done in the context of playing our method-patented games. At this stage, we as parents or facilitators act as a catalyst, and create an enquiry based approach to verbalize the challenges faced by the child alongside drawing the path to its solution.

• Level 4: Subconscious Competence (I can now apply what I did not know earlier in every aspect of my life) – The final level entails internalization of the newly acquired knowledge or skill. The learning slips to a deeper level and becomes a part of the subconscious mind, leading the new skill to the level of habit formation. Once done, the child is now able to relate the learning to varied real-life situations and environments.
  
  Role of Konshius – As a part of our process, we enable the child to go through more situations, thus creating more and more opportunities to apply the learning to new conditions and scenarios. This is also supported by following the process of making the child ‘think’ before taking an action and ‘articulate’ what the child is thinking before taking the action. This process of solving new situations, by first verbalization and articulation of the thinking process, is critical in completing the loop of new knowledge becoming lifelong learning.

Enabling STEAM learning through KONSHIUS

Game-based learning is revolutionizing learning in school and out of the school. The children explore an open-ended problem through game-based learning, which helps them reason their way to various solutions. This type of decision-making experience has a wide range of educational benefits in all the subject areas, but particularly in STEAM subjects, which are focused on teaching reflective inquiry, drawing interconnections, and substantive discussion. The 4 levels of learning at Konshius stimulate STEAM learning by:

1. Encouraging scientific thinking– With the help of a strategy game, a child learns to create, test, and revise their own hypotheses. Konshius games are a good fit for teaching STEAM subjects that often emphasize empirical methods of observation and analysis, and experiment with the formulation and dynamic adjustment of theories.
2. Providing interactive models– Konshius’s learning-by-doing methodology will help to understand STEAM content that is inherently linked to the scientific laws of the natural world. Our patented game designs put players into action, make spontaneous decisions, and think through the consequences of their actions, urging the interaction necessary to proceed. The exchange facilitates experiential, “hands-on” learning of even abstract concepts.
3. Using an inclusive and constructivist methodology– In-depth learning cannot occur by instructing children to think in a particular way. The progression design of our games becomes an excellent tool for engaging children as co-author of their learning experience. The Konshius program creates experiences for children to start thinking about their own thinking and consciously discover their competencies on their own.
4. Aligning development of mental age– Konshius is about developing transferable thinking skills that are domain-neutral. These are skills required for STEAM education. Each game has multiple age-appropriate levels for developing different thinking skills at every level, as per the child’s age. Focusing on thinking skills frees the child from the benchmarks of biological age for transitioning towards the development of mental age.
5. Reducing fear of failure– Each level in Konshius games is designed to achieve success through failure, keeping children highly engaged and self-motivated. Children generally start with the same thinking skills that worked for them earlier and fail in the subsequent level. This helps them realize that they need more than what they have to go to the next level. They learn to add on a new way of thinking that is required to now create success from this failure. Thus creating a spiral loop of success-failure-success.

Summing Up

Educators and parents worldwide are increasingly integrating game-based learning in classroom teaching for real-life centric learning. Konshius games and the program are designed to foster lifelong learnings like creativity and innovation, critical thinking and problem solving, collaboration, and communication, thus amalgamating 21st-century skills that promote STEAM education.

As custodians of thinking abilities and active learning processes of our children, we adults should engage our children through higher-order thinking questions. When we ask questions or probe our children to see their own thinking during game-playing, it helps them in discovering ‘how to think’. Here, our joint goal is not to tell children ‘what to think’ but to make them learn ‘how to think’. So that they can face any situation in life with this innate belief in self that ‘I know how to think’ and ‘I can create success out of any situation if I think’.