The old adage that unless something is used, you will lose it has been proved by cognitive science. The brain is very plastic. Factual learning is very insecure. And This is why new languages are so difficult to learn because learn words are facts. Unless languages are practised sufficiently, the facts will drift out of memory.

        The American dream that no child should be left behind is a wonderful ambition. Neuroscience research now illustrates not the most intelligent children have more efficient neural wiring between the hubs in their brains. It appears to be determined by genetics and early nurturing. This means that the learning potential of children will never be equal.

           Reference to neuroscience sounds impressive, but it only complements cognitive science. The white matter that connects the brain hubs, which creates the more efficient wiring, can be observed. It has been described as being like the flight paths radiating out from Heathrow between airport hubs. There are long and short brain connections.

           It is now common knowledge in the teaching profession that working memory has a very profound influence on children's school attainment. There are claims that working memory can be improved. Professor Susan Gathercole of the Cambridge University of the Brain contended in a Learnus Lecture that there is no evidence that working memory as a whole can be improved with training.

          Reference to neuroscience sounds impressive, but it only complements cognitive science. The white matter that connects the brain hubs, which creates the more efficient wiring, can be observed. It has been described as being like the flight paths radiating out from Heathrow between airport hubs. There are long and short brain connections.

           There is clear and explicit research evidence children's performance in basic skills is related to children's working memory capacity. This is why children find maths and second language learning difficult. It also has a strong influence on children's development of reading.

            Genetic research illustrates schools do not have the impact on children's attainment that is generally believed. And in the culture of the Far East, parents are virus responsible for their children's attainment. And in the West, schools are viewed as being totally responsible for their children's attainment. According to Professor Neil Thomas education neuroscientist, who reviewed neuroscience in an earnest lecture, it could as little as 20%.

            Neuroscience research sounds very appealing to the public. It has allowed neuro myths to be exploded, the most important of which is that the educational potential children is no longer equal. This should make it extremely difficult for education ministers to assert that all children's learning potential is equal.

            Irrespective of how politically unpalatable it Is for politicians, children will never attain equal levels of attainment. Even in the Far East binge learning cultures, where learning highly competitive, there is a spread of educational attainment there. Acrosss the world children attainment conforms to the Bell Shaped curve of standard distribution, which resembles height, where few are excessively tall or short, and most are around average.

           There has been dissatisfaction with mathematical attainment the Cockcoft Report into Mathematics 1982, God, which took five years took five research and compile, referred to concerns about children's mathematical attainment dating back to the 18xx. It referred to intelligent people finding maths difficult. The Pisa international school ranking, where children in the Far East are binge learning maths, is causing discontent about children's mathematical attainment in the west