Cognition and Learning

Cognition is the broad term for thinking, reasoning and learning, and involves the mental processes through which we develop knowledge and understanding via our senses, thoughts and experiences. Everybody’s brains work differently, and this affects how we process information and experience the world.

For some children and young people, their individual pattern of strengths and needs means that they experience significantly greater difficulty with learning than their peers. This might be with a particular aspect of learning (such as learning to read or write), or it may be that their differences affect learning more widely: for example, they may have difficulties with working memory which impact across all curriculum areas, as well as on their ability to follow instructions and organise themselves inside and outside of school.