Memorizing what you want to learn


How to better memorize what you want to learn?
Photo credit: Foter.com
I subscribe to what William James once said “It is our attitude at the beginning of a task which, more than anything else, will determine its outcome.”  But positive attitude cannot counteract the substantive small amount of short term memory we have (Miller, 1956). So, I respect my cognitive load (De Jong, 2010) and take the time I need to absorb the material given. I explore it in my own time (be it more or less than the average) by breaking the content into small, manageable chunks that I can better manipulate in my working memory while I strengthen, through revision and repetition, the synapses I already had or create new ones that encode new memories (Vanderbilt, 2014). Once content is in my ‘hands’ I apply different strategies: cognitive, memory, compensation, communication, metacognitive, affective and social (Oxford and Crookall, 1989). Moreover, I do lots of testing: quizzes, retelling, writing so that I can easily retrieve memory traces (Carpenter, Pashler, Wixted, & Vul, E., 2008; Karpick & Roediger, 2008). I also add difficulties to the material I'm learning, like more advanced texts and dissonant materials, which seem to slow down my rate of encoding, but that in fact allow me to better digest the material being learned (Bjork, 1994). Repetition is central to learning (Vanderbilt University, 2014) so I see the same material over and over again but in spaced intervals (Carpenter, Cepeda, Rohrer, Kang & Pashler, 2012) to make sure that this learning becomes long-term memories (that) must literally be built into the brain’s synapses”(Miller, 2016, p.2). And technology lends me a great help by enabling me to register something I do not want to forget by means of tools like diigo and livebinders. After all, memory can be extended in many different ways.

How about you? What are your preferred memory extensions?

References
Bjork, R. A. (1994). Memory and metamemory considerations in the training of human beings. In Metcalfe, Janet (Ed); Shimamura, Arthur P. (Ed), (1994). Metacognition: Knowing about Knowing. , (pp. 185-205). Cambridge, MA, US: The MIT Press, xiii, 334 pp.
Carpenter, S. K., Cepeda, N. J., Rohrer, D., Kang, S. H. K., & Pashler, H. (2012). Using spacing to enhance diverse forms of learning: Review of recent research and implications for instruction. Educational Psychology Review, 24, 369-378
Carpenter, S. K., Pashler, H., Wixted, J. T., & Vul, E. (2008). The effects of tests on learning and forgetting. Memory & Cognition, 36(2), 438-448.
De Jong, T. (2010). Cognitive load theory, educational research, and instructional design: some food for thought. Instructional Science, 38(2), 105-134.
Karpicke, J. D., & Roediger, H. L. (2008). The critical importance of retrieval for learning. Science, 319(5865), 966-968.
Miller, G. A. (1956). The magical number seven, plus or minus two: Some limits on our capacity for processing information. Psychological Review, 63(2), 81.
Oxford, R. and Crookall, D. (1989), Research on Language Learning Strategies: Methods, Findings, and Instructional Issues. The Modern Language Journal, 73: 404–419. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-4781.1989.tb05321.x

Comments

  1. AnonymousAugust 9, 2017 at 11:54 AM

    My "memory extentions" are multimedia. The more ways/avenues that I experience information, the better I retain it. I think this is such an important concept for educators to remember--that not everyone learns in the same way and that the cognitive load of a task may require additional supports beyond text or traditional lecture.
    Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
    Beth P

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mirela RamacciottiAugust 10, 2017 at 5:56 AM

      Dear Beth,
      You've touched upon a central principal in learning - we all have different brains, unique as our faces are and so, there's no single path in learning. Because we learn based on prior knowledge, that is different for each one of us, each learning trajectory is unique and that means we should embrace differentiation and recognize that in our classrooms worldwide.
      Talking about the cognitive load, you again touched a soft - and important - spot for every teacher. Just like with anything we do, quantity matters! Knowing more about what cognitive load is, how we can manage it in class and how to better prepare so that it stays within the 'zone of proximal development' are milestones in the formation and praxis of every committed teacher. And there's a great tool that helps us all to focus on what's important: concept or mind maps. To get your way around these tools, I suggest looking at this interesting blog post by free nuts (http://freenuts.com/top-10-free-online-mind-mapping-tools/).
      Thank you for your comment and for the opportunity to share and multiply our memory traces.

      Delete
  2. UnknownAugust 15, 2017 at 7:44 AM

    Hi Mirela, this is Jennifer Schuster (one of your JHU peers). For some reason my name is not appearing by above.

    This is a great post and interesting conversation between you and Beth. I wonder if you have suggestions of ways to discover our student's different learning paths. We can apply blanket differentiation by grouping students, and supply options or flexibilities in learning under UDL. But if each student is truly unique, as you suggest, how can we be sure we are serving them best? Should every students be given an individual learning plan? I've also experienced situations where some days certain strategies work, and other days the same strategies prove ineffective. Perhaps students need more reflection time built into their school day, if only to better understand their personal learning styles. Furthermore, many of my students complain that the idea of retaining information is becoming obsolete when technology so easily available at our disposal. This is a scary thought, but does it hold some merit?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Mirela RamacciottiAugust 15, 2017 at 8:01 AM

    HI, Jennifer.
    Thank you for your comment and for joining this interesting discussion. As you've hinted, the answer points to the student. It is, and will always be, the student's expectation towards his/her own learning that drives the process (Hattie, 2012). By reflection and acting upon that reflection, students will be able to take hold of this process, little by little, but with incremental independency and responsibility.
    On the topic of information and retention, there are some myths that have to be debunked and some universal truths to share, all thanks to the joint efforts of practitioners of MBE science. The myth is that memorization is not necessary for complex mental processing (like learning). It is utterly necessary, for it provides the foundations upon which they can make informed decisions in life. What is needed is to show students what is really adamant to be memorized and what can be searched on the web, many times over, if necessary. The truth is that without attention and memory, learning dos not happen (see the DNA video for more on that). Moreover, for new learning to occur, previous knowledge has to be accessed and serve as the basis upon which new information can take hold. To put simply, it is like building a house: ask your students if they can start by the roof? And rejoice on the answers (or lack thereof) it is bound to produce...learning is a complex, deep, extremely high-level process that needs emotional and cognitive investment. Students must be aware of that and of their own share (which is the lion's share) in this process for, after all, this is what guarantees their survival.

    References
    DNA Learning Center (n.d.). Attention and Memory [video] by Eric Kandel. Retrieved August 15, 2017, from https://www.dnalc.org/view/1282-Attention-and-Memory.html
    Hattie, J. (2012). Visible Learning for Teachers. Routledge

    ReplyDelete

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