essay about memory

Memory is a mechanism that accepts and processes information via a variety of states, including long-term and short-term memory. Before being transmitted to long-term memory, information is first absorbed in working memory. This research examines the modal model, which includes long-term, sensory, and short-term memory. Each of them plays a role in how long information is retained, how much information is stored, and how information is intercepted in the system. Differences in time, amount of information saved, and interception all have an impact on teaching and learning for both teachers and pupils. For instance, there is a limit on the amount of information an individual can hold and manipulate in their working memory. The capacity changes across people of different ages, as well as people of the same age. For developing children, the working memory capacity increases until it reaches an adult level while those with poor capacities struggle to meet heavy working memories (Gathercole & Baddeley, 2014).

Working Memory

According to the modal model, information moves from the sensory, to short-term, and then to long-term memory in stages. Sensory memory is the part where information enters once attention has been allocated to it and holds unattended information for a short period (Hsieh, & Ranganath, 2014). However, people have limited attention due to limitations of the working memory which is the part of short-term memory concerned with linguistic processing and immediately senses any type of information that enters the memory organ. It consists of interacting subsystems that are specialized in storing verbal and visuo-spatial information, as well as a component that controls activity of the working memory (Bruning & Schraw, 2011).

Generally, children have a poor working memory than adults, which brings out the difference in the way they absorb and process information. It is hence the responsibility of teachers to select the amount of information they teach at a time to help the children in absorbing information and learning smoothly. Giving too much information at once overloads the working memory of a child and makes it hard for them to absorb it. This forces the teachers to only teach a little amount of information at a time since continuous absorption results to the decay of the old information and as a result the new information replaces the old one. The children require constant repetition of new information so that it is stored in the long-term memory and can easily be retrieved. Information decays in less than 20 seconds unless it is rehearsed, the reason why an individual requires continuous repetition for it to be fully absorbed in the long-term memory. Hence, teachers should start with simple tasks that are familiar to the children, and then advance to complex content in order to expand the working memory of the child. For instance, the use of mnemonics, imagery and mediation helps in expanding the memory of the child (Nymberg et al., 2014).

Some students have a poor working memory than their age mates, a situation described by teachers as having memory problems. Such students have a low working memory which becomes so overloaded in such a way that it can no longer keep the information necessary to guide them on a particular mental activity (Hsieh & Ranganath, 2014). The teacher has to pay special attention to them so that they keep up with the learning pace of the others. To manage the functioning of the working memory, chunking information in to meaningful groups based on already available knowledge can be applied. The students will hence be able to link the new information with prior knowledge and as a result they will easily be able to capture it.

Encoding

The ultimate goal of knowledge acquisition and automation is to store it in the long-term memory, a process called encoding. According to Penney (1989), both auditory and visual systems simultaneously increase working memory, a process called dual modality. The auditory working memory transfers information into the verbal code, while the visual system transfers it to the pictorial code. This process requires time and rehearsal to transmit it to the long-term memory. Some students have memory problems; hence teachers should be aware of the warning signs of working memory failures and work towards solving the problem. This is achieved through re-presenting information, using memory aids, and breaking tasks and instructions into smaller steps (Penney & Blackwood, 1989).

Retrieval

In conclusion, storing information in the long-term memory is essential for retrieval purpose. Retrieving the information means taking it back to the short-term memory. For information to be successfully retrieved, continuous rehearsal is required since it can easily decay and other information replaces it. For instance, learning the procedure of solving a mathematical problem requires constant repetition over and over again to avoid forgetting and decay.

b) How Understanding Working, Encoding and Retrieval Can Positively Influence Instructions in a Classroom

Understanding working, encoding and retrieval of information with the help of modal model can positively influence how teacher give instructions, and how students receive them in a classroom. First, a student is able to pay keen attention to the instructions given in class bearing in mind that they know how well they are able to capture information. On the other hand, when teachers understand about the topic, they will provide training and support to their students, and mostly those with working memory problems. The teacher will recognize task failure, evaluate the working memory loads, encourage the use of memory aids, and develop aids to support the student (Rohrer & Taylor, 2006).

First Example on Working Memory

For instance, Joseph is an eight-year old child who is in his third year in school. He is among those with the lowest ability in mathematics and reading, and struggles with most of the classroom activities. He does not follow complex instructions that his peers are able to follow, like counting even numbers continuously, or, understanding instructions like ‘put your books in the bag, the pencils in the grey box, and the rubber on the table.’ In addition, remembering small amount of information is difficult for him. He makes a lot of errors when processing a lot of information at the same time. In most cases, he skips important steps or repeats them, and often loses the complex details. At first, the teacher had not realized about Joseph’s problem; he thought he was not serious in class and was just not willing to be attentive. The teacher did not have a clear understanding of how working memory works among different people. This is a common problem among many teachers; they are not able to identify students with poor working memory.

When a different teacher who had a good understanding of working memory and its impact among different people took over Joseph’s class, he was able to understand that Joseph had a poor working memory and required special attention. The teacher knew that if he was left unattended, Joseph is at the risk of achieving poor academic results in his primary and secondary levels, and enter his adulthood with few skills and qualifications than his peers. The new teacher monitored his working memory capability, started training him on how to absorb little information at a time, and exposed him to various techniques including mnemonics where he used prior knowledge that Joseph knew to help him relate it to new information. It did not take long before Joseph could read complex words by himself and his working memory expanded, since he was now able to follow both simple and complex instructions easily.

Joseph’s case shows that an understanding of the working memory topic brings a positive impact on the way a student follows instructions. The first teacher lacked a good understanding of the topic, and as a result he was not able to identify the children who need special attention in order to improve their working memory.

Another important thing to understand in learning and teaching process is encoding and retrieval. A teacher who fully understands about the process of encoding and retrieval effectively helps students to encode information with ease. Since encoding involves the storing of information in the long-term memory, practice, repetition, and hard work is required. A teacher should hence be conversant with various techniques of encoding information which include the use of motivation, prior knowledge, reconstructive memory, massed practice, chunking information into meaningful parts, and many other ways (Albouy, Weiss, Baillet, & Zatorre, 2017).

Second Example on Encoding and Retrieval of Information

David, a lecturer specialized in psychology understands that most students struggle with encoding information, especially when a lot of complex information is involved. He hence adopted a unique teaching strategy of storytelling his personal experience to integrate the classroom work and real life situation. The students seem to enjoy his lessons, and the same time they use his examples to remember about the topics learned in class. Stories use both verbal and pictorial coding systems of an individual. As a result, it is easy to retrieve the information linked to the story. David’s students easily follow instructions out of the interest they have developed from the stories, as well as easily connect what they learn with real life experiences. The technique makes them more attentive in class and hence they are able to grasp even the most complex details.

Conclusion

In conclusion, understanding how an individual’s memory works while absorbing, encoding, and retrieving information is essential in learning and teaching processes. Teachers will be able to understand the behavior and characters of their students, and treat them accordingly. In addition, the understanding the topic contributes to positive growth in academic performance.

References

Albouy, P., Weiss, A., Baillet, S., & Zatorre, R. J. (2017). Selective entrainment of theta oscillations in the dorsal stream causally enhances auditory working memory performance. Neuron, 94(1), 193-206.

Bruning, R., & Schraw, G. (2011). Cognitive psychology and instruction (5th ed.). London: Pearson Education.

Gathercole, S. E., & Baddeley, A. D. (2014). Working memory and language. London: Psychology Press.

Green, M. C. (2004). Storytelling in teaching. APS Observer, 17(4), 37-39

Hsieh, L. T., & Ranganath, C. (2014). Frontal midline theta oscillations during working memory maintenance and episodic encoding and retrieval. Neuroimage, 85, 721-729.

Nymberg, C., Banaschewski, T., Bokde, A. L., Büchel, C., Conrod, P., Flor, H., ... & Ittermann, B. (2014). DRD2/ANKK1 polymorphism modulates the effect of ventral striatal activation on working memory performance. Neuropsycho Pharmacology, 39(10), 2357.

Penney, C. G., & Blackwood, P. A. (1989). Recall mode and recency in immediate serial recall: Computer users beware! Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 27(6), 545-547.

Rohrer, D., & Taylor, K. (2006). The effects of overlearning and distributed practice on the retention of mathematics knowledge. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 20(9), 1209-1224. doi:10.1002/acp.1266