Executive functions refer to the brain skills which we use to achieve goals and complete tasks in our daily life (1,2). They are located at the frontal lobes of our brain above our eyes. They help us to think, focus and remember. There are three parts of executive functioning: working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility (3).

Working memory may help us to hold information in our mind while working with a part of that information (4). As Warren E. (2022, 3) says, working memory is like a juggle that can hold and use two to four bits of information. Younger kids can hold little information in mind and can follow no more than 1-2 steps at a time, while middle school kids hold more information and can follow more than two steps at a time (5,6). There are three tools which help us to increase the potency of our mind. The first tool is our inner voice, that is we think words or sounds over and over again, in order to remember them and solve different kind of problems in our head. No one can hear our inner voice. The second tool is our imagination. It helps us to picture different images in our mind in order to solve problems successfully, understand many kinds of topics and visualize our future. The third tool is our long-term memory. This kind of memory has to do with what we have learned and remember from the past and thus, can help us to learn new information in the present and increase our working memory. There are 5 steps to increase working memory:

1. Immediate Memory, where new information enters in our mind through 5 senses, such as sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste.
2. Short-term Memory and Conscious awareness, where we can hold a small amount of information that we can use.
3. Central Executive, where we can use our inner vision, and visualize information in our mind and our inner voice and “hear” words or sounds in our mind.
4. Conscious awareness, which is a stage that shares information using long-term memory, inner vision, and inner voice.
5. Long-term memory, which stores information as memories for a long time; these memories can be recalled when we want to use them.

Inhibitor control is the second part of executive functioning. It is our ability to ignore information that distract us, to think before we act, to concentrate on thinking, to control our emotions, to evaluate situations and the way our behavior should react, and to control our environment, for example, ask people to be quiet while we are working on a project. (3,6). There are three types of inhibitory control:

1. Attention Control: It has to do with our ability to decide on what to focus and leave out any distractions. There are four main points about attention control: a) Goal-directed persistence, where we can complete a goal without getting distracted. b) Sustaining attention, where we can focus on an activity for a long time. c) Shifting attention, where we can shift attention between one task to another. d) Task initiation, where we can begin a task on time without a delay and to work a task on our own.

2.Emotional Control / Regulation: It has to do with our ability to manage and direct our emotions. According to Jill Bolte Taylor, this type has to do with the “90 seconds rule”, where our emotion for a situation lasts 90 seconds in our mind. After this time, it is our choice whether we should remain to that emotion and keep it alive or not.

3.Self-Monitoring: It is our ability to understand someone’s action or behavior and give the right advice. In this type, we use self-awareness 3 or metacognition, which means to be aware of what we know and don’t know, assess our progress, and know what we can do to complete a task (2,6).

Cognitive flexibility is our brain’s ability to go from one way of thinking to another, to adapt to new things or to change events we have planned (3,7,8). It allows us to do three skills. The first skill is our ability to change activities, such as to switch from reading a book to getting a project done. The second skill is to learn that different situations have different rules. The third skill is our ability to change a point of view, which means to see things from a different angle. This part of executive functioning helps us to take the right decisions in each situation, and to use creative thinking and make adjustments (3).

Executive function skills are very important since they help us to think, organize, and plan our lives, manage our time and our thoughts, and remember and deal with different situations. These skills guide us in everything we do during lifetime.

 

Bibliography

1.Anderson, P. (2002). Assessment and Development of Executive Function during Childhood. Child Neuropsychology, 8, 71-82.

2.Scully, Kr. (2016). Executive Functioning Brain Games. Pathway2Success.

3.Warren, E. (2022). Developing Executive Functions and Study Strategies: A Comprehensive Approach. Learning Specialist Courses

4.Cartwright, K.B. (2015). Executive Skills and Reading Comprehension: A Guide for Educators. The Guilford Press.

5.Dowson, P. and Guard, R. (2009). Smart but Scattered. The Revolutionary “Executive Skills” Approach to Helping Kids to Reach Their Potential. 1st Edition

6.McIver, M. (2018). Executive Functioning. Orton-Gillingham Online Academy 4

7.Miller, L. (2021). What is cognitive flexibility and why does it matter? Betterup.com

8.Makowski, M. & MacDonald Chr. (2020). What is cognitive flexibility and how do I help my child with it? Foothills Academy, 197