Welcome to the November 2025 Learning Brain News. It is packed with ideas and links that you may find interesting.

Here are some that especially caught our attention:

• Increase in memory problems for young adults
• Boosting premature babies’ language development
• Mental cost for autistic teens who mask autistic traits in social settings

Mother’s Voice Boosts Babies Language

Hearing the sound of their mother’s voice promotes development of language pathways in a premature baby’s brain.

According to a new Stanford Medicine-led study premature babies who listened to recordings of their mothers reading had more mature language-related brain connections than those who did not.

Early Trauma Hardwires the Brain for Aggression and Self-Harm

A new study reveals that aggression and self-harm share a biological foundation in the brain’s response to early-life trauma which predisposes individuals to self-injury and aggressive outbursts later in life.

Alarming Surge in Memory Problems Among Young Adults

Cognitive struggles are climbing, especially among young and economically disadvantaged adults. Rates of self-reported cognitive disability nearly doubled in people under 40 between 2013 and 2023. Researchers suspect social and economic inequality plays a major role and are urging further study to understand the trend’s causes and long-term impact.

Autism Masking Leaves a Mark on the Brain

Some autistic teens mask their traits to “pass” as non-autistic in social settings.  A new study reveals how this masking manifests in brain activity, shedding light on its mental cost. 

The findings could improve identification and support for autistic teens who go unnoticed in schools.

Adult ADHD is Diagnosed When You Are ‘Functionally Impaired’. But What Does That Mean?

A recent article in the Medical Journal of Australia highlights that some people struggle to access and afford diagnoses and treatment for ADHD.

What is ADHD diagnosis based on? A key component is functional impairment. Follow the link to find out what this actually means.

5 Signs of Oppositional Defiant Disorder & 4 Ways to Help an ODD Child

Does your child argue a lot?  Do they seem to anger easily? Is this behaviour worrying you?
It could be quite normal – just a phase your child is going through. On the other hand they may have oppositional defiant disorder, also known as ODD.

There are five signs which can point to ODD, according to Dr Martha Burns. In a conversation on the Learning Capacity Podcast, she described the signs and discussed how to help a child who has this disorder.

Learning How to Learn eBook

Children go to school to learn. For each year of schooling there is a curriculum that has to be delivered by their teachers. The curriculum is the "what" of education. 

But education is more than the “what”. It must include the “how” of learning.

Read about the “how” of learning, why it’s important and what needs to be done to help students learn how to learn in this eBook