Train your Brain

One-to-one training for children to improve their learning skills Avinash Bartakke is the founder-director of Neural Space, the only cognitive skill training centre in the country. Launched in 2011, the centre provides customised BrainRx programmes, with a license from LearningRx, a reputed brain training institute in the US. The LearningRx brain development programmes have been developed by Dr Ken Gibson. Based on over 30 years of research and clinical trials, they identify weak cognitive skills and correct them be means of intensive one-on-one game-like exercise. BrainRx can help in diagnosing and treating reading and learning difficulties, dyslexia, attention deficit disorder (ADD), memory problems, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), learning difficulties in maths (dysalculia) and problems caused by Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI). Bartakke says, “Training is my core competency. Having worked for 17 years with ICICI Prudential in the field of training and development, the scope of application of Brain Training, extends from children to senior citizens.” He tied up with LearningRx, the only organisation in the world with a specific procedure for one-to-one training. We think playing and solving puzzles are ways to measure the cognitive skills in a person. However, it is not so. Everyone is equipped with 70 mental tools, out of which only seven are most important, like attention, processing speed, working memory, logical reasoning, visual processing and auditory processing. Moreover the sensory motor development is important for a child’s growth. There is a tendency to equate academic achievements with cognitive skills, such as visual and auditory processing, logical reasoning and memory. Unless children are approached with a view to first training their cognitive skills, academics won’t improve. Besides cognitive training, environment and adequate training also plays a role. “Our trainers work on the core competency of the child, which he will never forget in his life. The centre believes in imparting one-to one training with the child so that he can improve his core learning skills. Therefore, early detection can help a child to harness these qualities and which will make the child perform better in academics and in his life,” explains Bartakke. Bringing this out in a child will help him focus in his academics and life in a more positive way. The ability to focus continuously and paying attention plays a key role in a student’s life. In case of adults also, the use of mental abilities is important because after the age of 35, the decline of cognitive skills begin. BrainRx specialises in making kids and adults smarter through research based programs. These help in better absorption, retention and recall of inputs which has a direct affect in efficiency. The USP of the program is that it is result focused with a highly committed personal training. The focus is also on learning while you play method. It helps a child to develop his or her cognitive skills. Neural Space holds workshops in schools for teachers and students free of cost. There are 24 training procedures which take place in 72 hours. There are seven trainers trained by Bartakke himself. During the workshops, 30 students undergo training for one hour, six days a week.