NEUROSCIENCE AND LEARNING DISORDERS IN CHILDHOOD: UNDERSTANDING BRAIN DEVELOPMENT AND ITS IMPACTS ON THE EDUCATIONAL PROCESS

Abstract

Understanding brain development in childhood has proven essential to explaining the mechanisms involved in learning disorders and their implications for the educational context. In this sense, this study aimed to analyze the relationship between early brain development and learning disorders through an integrative literature review. The search was conducted in the SpringerLink, DOAJ, Latindex, and ERIC databases, covering publications from 2020 to 2026 in Portuguese and English. Fourteen studies were selected, addressing neurobiological, cognitive, and environmental aspects related to the topic. The findings indicate that learning disorders have a multifactorial nature, involving alterations in brain development, perinatal factors, environmental influences, and educational processes. The importance of childhood brain plasticity is highlighted as a central element in the acquisition of cognitive skills, as well as the bidirectional relationship between cognition and academic performance. These results reinforce that learning is a dynamic process shaped by multiple interactions throughout development. It is concluded that the integration between neuroscience and education is essential for early identification of learning difficulties and for the development of more effective, evidence-based pedagogical strategies.