Chapter 3: Understanding Learning and Memory Theoretical ...documents.routledge-interactive.s3.amazonaws.com/9781138850347/C… · ... Understanding Learning and Memory Theoretical

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Chapter 3: Understanding Learning and Memory Theoretical Background Professors Dembo and Seli believe that in order to fully comprehend how we learn, and to be able to learn effectively, we need to have an understanding of how and where learning takes place in the human mind, as well as how our perceptions of our intelligence influence our ability to learn. Professors Dembo and Seli also address the concept of learning styles in this chapter. Their suggestion to focus on teaching adaptive learning strategies rather than identifying one‘s learning style is based on recent cognitive psychology research. Pashler, McDaniel, Rohrer, and Bjork (2009) reviewed existing research to test the ―meshing hypothesis$ according to which instruction is optimal when provided in a format that matches the student‘s learning style (e.g., for an auditory learner, auditory information would be emphasized). The review of literature concluded that at this time, there is no evidence for the hypothesis that people learn and perform better when instruction is designed to match their distinct learning style. Therefore, ―at present, there is no adequate evidence base to justify incorporating learning-style assessments into general educational practice$ (Pashler et al., 2008, p. 105). There is, however, a strong evidence base for the effectiveness of meaningful learning strategies, such as those introduced by chapter 3. In order to maximize the effectiveness of learning strategies‘ instruction, students need to understand why it is important to use more complex learning strategies than rehearsal (e.g., rereading, copying, reciting, and underlining). The introduction of the information processing system helps students understand that the purpose of learning is to move information into long- term memory and elaboration and organizational learning strategies are effective in accomplishing this goal. Demonstrating how information flows through the information processing system with the help of elaboration and organizational strategies also helps students understand the utility of such strategies to the learning and retention process. Therefore, students need to self-observe and evaluate the effectiveness of the learning strategies they have used in the previous courses they have taken. This chapter provides an important foundation for the learning strategies discussed in chapter 8 and 9 of the textbook. When you discuss the importance of, for instance, generating and answering questions to learning from lectures and textbooks, you can explain how the strategy works based on students‘ knowledge of the information processing system. You can do the same when explaining the importance of using an organizational strategy such as a representation or map. These explanations offer a good response to the typical student question: ―Why do I need to learn this material?$ In fact, the purpose of Unit 1 is to help students understand why certain learning and motivational strategies are effective. After this information has been understood, it often is easier to convince students that they need to change aspects of their own motivation and learning. There are a number of excellent resources on learning more about human learning and the information processing system. All basic textbooks in educational psychology have a chapter or two on the topic, including those listed below.

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Dembo, M. H. (1994). Applying educational psychology (5th ed.). White Plains, NY: Longman.

Izawa, C., & Ohta, N. (2005). Human learning and memory: Advances in theory and application: The 4th Tsukuba International Conference On Memory. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers.

Lefrancois, G. R. (2000). Theories of human learning: What the old man said (4th ed.). New York: Psychology Press.

Slavin, R. E. (2011). Educational psychology: Theory and practice (10th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.

Woolfolk, A. E. (2008). Educational psychology (11th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.

Excellent textbooks on cognitive aspects of human learning are:

Eysenck, M. W., & Keane, M. T. (2010). Cognitive psychology: A student’s handbook (6th ed.). New York: Psychology Press.

Herrmann, D. J., Yoder, C. Y., Gruneberg, M., Payne, D. G. (2006). Applied cognitive psychology: A textbook. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers.

Ormrod, J. E. (2011). Human learning (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Ormrod, J. E. (2011). Educational psychology: Developing learners (7th ed.). Upper Saddle

River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall. Introduction

This chapter introduces the student to where various learning processes take place in the brain, the difference between a fixed and malleable view of intelligence, and the model of information processing. It has been our experience that students enjoy learning the content of this chapter because of the myriad of activities that can be completed. An excellent way to start off this lecture is by asking students various questions to probe how they might remember specific information. Some examples of questions you might ask include: How do you know where you parked this morning? How do you remember where your keys are as you rush out for your 8 am class? How do you remember the names of people that you have just met. Information processing theory may be an easier cognitive theory for students to understand because of the frequently-used analogy with a computer. In this analogy the sensory memory relates to the keyboard where information is entered, the working memory is analogous to the project being entered as seen on the monitor, and the long-term memory is analogous to the data that is saved. Information processing is closely tied to many of the cognitive tasks in which academically successful students engage, including the ability to concentrate and the ability to extract relevant information. A key point to get across to students when introducing and discussing the information processing system and theory is the fact that how we learn determines what we remember. Essentially, the more meaningful we make the information that we need to learn, the more likely we are to remember and be able to retrieve that information on a later day and especially when we need it. One effective analogy to use to make this point clear to students is that of a closet full of clothes. Students will be able to relate to the example of how easy it is to find what they want to wear when they organize the clothes in their closet according to color, type of garment etc., and, on the other hand, how difficult it is to find what they want to wear when they do not.

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Key Terms neuroplasticity long-term memory fixed mindset rote learning growth mindset meaningful learning information processing system mnemonic encoding distributed practice retrieval massed practice short-term sensory store rehearsal strategies working memory elaboration strategies chunking acronyms maintenance rehearsal organizational strategies Suggested Lecture Topics Intelligence: fixed or malleable. Explain the difference between a fixed and malleable view of intelligence, and the importance of the idea of neuroplasticity in understanding the malleable view of intelligence. The PowerPoint on chapter 3 points out these ideas. To learn more about this topic, please visit: http://mindsetonline.com/whatisit/about/index.html. Fixed or growth mindset. Explain the difference between a fixed and growth mindset, and how the differences in perceptions influence learning and motivation. There is a slide in the chapter 3 PowerPoint that can serve as a springboard for this discussion. Seven flaws of human memory. Discuss the seven flaws of human memory. It is also useful to categorize the flaws into sins of commission and sins of omission indicating flaws that deal with changing or adding information to memories (misattribution, suggestibility, persistence, bias), and flaws that deal with an inability to retrieve specified information when desired (transience, absent-mindedness, blocking). Information processing model. Figure 3.1 on p. 80 can be used as a visual while presenting the specifics of the information processing model. Each model component should be discussed. The PowerPoint on chapter 3 presents a matrix comparing the various components of the information processing system on capacity and duration. This matrix not only serves as an example of an organizational strategy, but will also aid students in their understanding of the information processing system. Short-Term Sensory Store (STSS). To demonstrate this component, instructors could ask students to generate a list of everything that they experienced through their senses from the time they awoke until this minute. Ask students to review their list to see if anything was missed. Ask students to consider why they forgot some things and not others. The information that students remember will be determined by factors that influence their attention. Ormrod‘s (2004) book on human learning provides an excellent discussion of the factors that influence attention. Attention. It is important to discuss with students how attention relates to the information processing system. If we do not attend to information that enters our STSS, it will not proceed to our WM, and as a result we will have no chance of processing that information. Moreover,

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attention is a limited resource in that we can only pay attention to so many things in our environment at one given time. Therefore, it is essential to convey to students that it is important to be selective in what they pay attention to. They want to make sure that they pay attention to what is important. Working Memory (WM). This component is frequently called short-term memory and is also known as the telephone number memory or active memory. The most important aspects to note about the working memory are its limited capacity and duration and how these factors influence the nature of the learning process. Chunking. This is an effective strategy to remember information. Instructors could use Exercise 3.2 on p. 83–84 to demonstrate the effectiveness of chunking or grouping bits of information. Students will need a sheet of paper for activities. Read the list of six sets of letters aloud at about 30-second intervals. Ask students to recall all 15 letters in order, then have students turn over the sheet of paper. Read the five lists of letters at the same rate, and then ask students to recall all letters in order. Ask students to sum the number of correct answers for each list. If time permits, tabulate results and calculate class means. Discuss observed differences.

Maintenance rehearsal. Discuss the process and share text and/or instructor examples. Working in pairs, ask students to list five examples of how they used maintenance rehearsal to remember information (personal or academic examples). Ask each pair to share one or two examples. Long-Term Memory (LTM). Discuss characteristics of LTM. A graphic representation (skeleton) follows of the information processing components that can be constructed as a class activity, a group activity, or in pairs. If you had students complete graphic representations in chapter 1, then they should be able to create this one with little guidance. When finished, ask two or three groups or pairs to put the graphic on the board. Discuss similarities and/or differences. Ask students how this graphic would help them answer the potential essay item: Describe the information processing model. (The objective is to help students recognize the value of this organizational tool. Otherwise, there is some research data to suggest that they will not develop their own graphic representations after they exit your course.)

Short-term sensory store Working Memory Long-term memory

Capacity

Duration

What happens to information in this

component?

Meaningfulness activity. In our own classes we use another activity to demonstrate the effect of meaningfulness on retention. In advance of class, prepare 20 index cards. Each should contain a noun (e.g., newspaper, umbrella, automobile). On ten of the cards write the letter A under the word, and on the remaining ten cards write the letter B. Shuffle the cards. Provide the following instructions to your students:

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Take out a sheet of paper and number from one to 20 down the side. I am going to read you a list of words, which I will later ask you to recall. After each word, you will hear the letter A or B. You will make a judgment of each word based on the letter that follows it. If you hear the letter ―A,$ then you are asked to write down on your sheet of paper the number of syllables in the word. If you hear the letter―B,$ then you are asked to assess whether you like or dislike that word by writing the letter L for like or D for dislike on your sheet of paper. (Review as needed.)

Read each word with letter, allowing the same amount of time (30–60 seconds) for students to either write down the number of syllables or to record L or D. Afterwards, ask students to recall all 20 words in any order on the back of their paper. While students are completing this task, you should sort the 20 words into two groups based on the letter that followed. Read through the ―A$ list first. Have students check to see how many of the ten words were recalled. (Some moaning or giggling usually occurs because they do not usually remember as many of the A words.) Read the list of ―B$ words. Once again have students count the number of words recalled. (It is not uncommon for students to remember all ten words.) Record the results determined by a show of hands. Compare the findings. Ask students to explain the observed differences. Conclude with a discussion of how meaningfulness is important in determining what we remember. Ask students for suggestions for increasing meaningfulness. Elaboration strategies. The key to elaboration strategies is connection. Specifically, elaboration strategies improve knowledge retention because students link new information with previously learned information. Mnemonics are useful tools to recall lists, categories, sequences, etc. After reviewing various types of mnemonics, it is helpful to ask students for examples. If you have students who are taking foreign language courses, then ask them to generate some key- word examples. You can also probe students to recall some of the acronyms they have used in the past such as when they learned about PEMDAS for the order of operations in evaluating algebraic expressions for the SAT (yet another acronym). You can also point out to students that the IPS is an acronym for the information processing system. In the past, we have put students into small groups and asked them to develop mnemonics for the list of key terms from this chapter. Once completed, we ask each group to place one or two of the mnemonics on the board to be shared with the rest of the class. Complex learning requires more than simple mnemonics. Students paraphrase, create analogies, ask questions, or summarize information to improve retention. The instructor could ask students to share some examples of these more complex strategies.

Organizational strategies. Organizational strategies also improve our ability to recall information by structuring material in meaningful ways. Exercise 3.3 on p. 93–94 provides a great demonstration of how organization can be used to improve recall of information. If completed in class, we suggest that the instructor read the list of 15 words aloud at equal time intervals (30–60 seconds). Students should be asked to recall as many words as possible by writing them down on a sheet of paper. Check, by a show of hands, how many words were recalled. Read the second list aloud following previous procedures, then ask students to recall these words on the back of the sheet of paper. Check on accuracy and compare findings. Ask students to draw conclusions about the value of organization. (We would also suggest that you have students look at the first list again. How many students began to organize or chunk the information?) Exercise 3.3 can be assigned or completed and discussed in class.

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Suggestions for Using Select Follow-Up Activities Follow-Up Activities. (Reminder: Instructors can choose from the follow-up activities to correspond with coverage of content in class and as time permits. Also these activities could be assigned and discussed later.) Follow-Up Activities 2, 3, and 4 on p. 98–99 will enable students to apply the content from this chapter to specific situations, and be able to understand how and when the various learning strategies are particularly effective. If completed during class, students could be placed in small groups or paired to complete the activities. Based on classroom discussion, the instructor could generate a list of suggestions for each scenario. These Activities may be easier than Activity 5 on p. 99, because students are asked to assess their own behavior. Some students can be more objective when assessing an unknown individual versus assessing themselves. If Activities 2, 3, and 4 are completed in class, then Activity 5 could be assigned. Students could be encouraged to complete Activity 6 on p. 99 with a classmate.

1. Analyze a student’s behavior (Follow-Up Activity 3): Carla focused all her study time on using a rehearsal strategy to learn key terms. This strategy appeared to help her on the multiple-choice questions that may have emphasized basic knowledge. However, she needs to use elaboration and organizational strategies to understand and respond to the higher-level questions that may have been asked on the second part of the exam. Point out to students that instructors can usemultiple-choice questions to assess higher level thinking as well. Ask for examples in exams that they have taken in high school or college.

2. Analyze a student’s behavior (Follow-Up Activity 4): The development of a

study plan is an excellent study strategy. Also, the fact that Ruben knows what he doesn‘t understand is an important first step in learning the material. Writing questions and attempting to answer them is another good learning strategy. Discuss some of the possible reasons for why he became frustrated. Did he attempt to use too many strategies? Did he need more time to implement his strategies? Another approach to this scenario is to discuss how difficult it is to change behavior. Ask the students whether they revert back to ineffective learning strategies simply to get tasks completed. Finally, what role does motivation play in learning and applying new learning and study strategies?

Thought Questions

1. Does the information processing model provide a valid explanation of how we learn? Why or why not?

2. Discuss the benefits and limitations of mnemonic devices. 3. Since we know that information that is meaningful is more easily retained, what

can you do to make your courses more meaningful? 4. What is the difference between elaboration and organizational learning strategies

in terms of their function and how information is stored in the long-term memory? 5. What is the difference between a growth and a fixed mindset? 6. What is the difference between a fixed and malleable view of intelligence? 7. What is neuroplasticity and how does it relate to the idea of malleable intelligence?

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Additional Activities

1. Primacy-recency effect: This activity can be used as an icebreaker or as a class activity to initiate discussion on the primacy-recency effect.

a) Read a list of 20 random simple words (knife, butter, chair, etc.) while students

listen without taking notes.

knife butter chair plane table cup phone computer briefcase letter bird pencil book word cat paper shoe hair dog stone

b) When the list is done, have students write down the words they recall. c) Then ask: Who remembers knife, butter and chair (first words)?

Who remember stone, dog and hair (last words)? Who remembers letter, pencil and book (middle words)?

It will become apparent that students remember best the last and first words. After the activity is completed, discuss the following question with students: How may the primacy-recency effect be manifested in the educational setting?

2. Memory flaw activity: The purpose of this activity is for students to identify the

various flaws of human memory based on the scenarios provided. This activity is an entertaining way to contribute to students‘ understanding of the various flaws of human memory. This activity is an extension of Follow-Up Activity 2 in chapter 3.

1. Your grandfather, who grew up under very difficult circumstances, says that he wishes he could go back to his childhood because life was so easy.

2. You can‘t remember where you put your house keys when you came home yesterday.

3. After a fight with your mother you keep replaying the things she said over and over in your head.

4. On the way out from Commons a student yells; ―Hi!$ and asks you how you‘re doing. You know that you‘ve met him before, but don‘t know when or where.

5. You tell your friends that your mom always told you ―not to play ball in the house,$ but your mother insists she‘s never said that.

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6. Your music teacher asks you to play the piano sonata you played at last year‘s recital. You begin playing only to find that there are parts you no longer remember.

7. While in the grocery store, you forget to give the cashier your coupons because you were busy filling out a check.

8. You‘re trying to remember your student ID number; it‘s on the tip of your tongue, but you can‘t quite get it out.

9. You are trying to log into a website that requires a password you set up months ago, but can‘t remember.

10. A woman who has gone through a very difficult divorce says that her marriage to her ex-husband was the happiest time of her left.

11. Everyone says that they wish they could go back to high school because it was the best time of their life.

12. You can‘t study for an upcoming quiz because you keep remembering the game-winning homerun you made yesterday.

13. A friend of yours is helping you prepare for your EDPT exam by quizzing you. She asks; ―The IPS is a memory process that helps you do what?$

Answer key: 1. bias 6. transience 11. bias 2. absent-mindedness 7. absent-mindedness 12. persistence 3. persistence 8. blocking 13. suggestibility 4. blocking 9. transience 5. misattribution 10. bias

3. Brain Training: The purpose of this activity is for students to actually experience the notion of neuroplasticity. Have students sign up for a free trial on www.lumosity.com and select the cognitive processes/areas they want to improve. Lumosity provides targeted and individualized brain training to enhance and improve specified cognitive processes based on users‘ selection of cognitive processes and areas to improve. Students are required to engage in 15 minutes of brain training per day. It would be useful to have students sign up early in the semester, and then track their progress

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throughout the semester by submitting a weekly journal using VoiceThread. At the end of the semester, students will be able to determine how much they have progressed in the various cognitive process areas.

4. Memory Loss and Retrieval Errors: The purpose of this activity is for students to

synthesize their knowledge of the information processing system by analyzing the cases and explaining the causes of the memory problem in each case. Have students share their answers to each case on a group or course wall. You can, for instance, create a group for your class on Facebook, invite your students to join the group, and have the students engage in a discussion about the various cases by posting their explanations on the wall.

Directions: Below are three hypothetical scenarios in which people find themselves unable to recall information. Using the Information Processing System, identify at which of the three stages (short-term sensory store, working memory, long-term memory) the people are encountering difficulties and explain why.

a) A police officer is serving as a witness at a trial of a man pulled over on charges of drunk driving. While the police officer is able to readily describe the circumstances leading to the arrest, the clothing and mannerisms of the defendant, and the model of his car, he finds that he is unable to remember details about the exact location where the defendant was pulled over. For instance, although there was a gas station across the street from the scene, the officer could not recall whether it had been open or closed at the time of the arrest.

• The information processing system provides at least one plausible reason why the office could recall some details but not others. Although the officer may very well have seen whether or not the gas station was open, at the time of the arrest this may have seemed like an irrelevant detail. If attention was not paid to this detail, then it would only progress to the short-term sensory store where input is rapidly lost. The office remembered pertinent details related to the arrest because this is where his attention was focused. These details were thus moved past the short- term sensory store into working memory, were elaborated upon and organized, and were ultimately moved into long-term memory. The point: without attention, information never even reaches the working memory stage.

b) Over spring break Anne traveled to Hawaii for a short vacation. She brought along her

textbooks and diligently read on the beach while her friends barbequed, surfed, and listened to music around her. At the end of the vacation Anne discovered that she couldn’t remember any of the material she read!

• The information processing system provides at least one plausible reason why Anne could not recall any of the content she read. Although Anne was paying some degree of attention to the book (enough to read it at least), it seems likelythat she was suffering from memory loss at the working memory stage. Anne was surrounded by distractions and likely highly motivated to simply get her reading over with, so she may not have put the mental effort into elaborating upon and organizing the content of her readings. As a result, the material was never encoded from her working memory into her long-term memory.

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c) Edward is doing a presentation on information processing theory. He’s just recently learned the material, has practiced his presentation twice, and is confident he knows enough to get through the presentation. During the presentation however he has a ―brain freeze$ and can’t remember the term ―maintenance rehearsal.$ He ends up skipping it during his presentation and only remembers the term later that day.

• The information processing system provides at least one plausible reason why Edward, who knew the words ―maintenance rehearsal$ and recalled them later in the day, would be unable to produce them during his presentation. The fact that he recalled the material later that day and had managed to put together the presentation in the first place suggests that Edward did actually learn this term. His problem therefore was an issue of retrieval from long-term memory. Because of anxiety or perhaps insufficient elaboration/organization during his initial studies, Edward simply couldn’t recall information he had previously learned.

Additional Resources

Ashby, F. G., Maddox, W. T. (2005). Human category learning. Annual Review of Psychology,

56, 149–178. Baddeley, A. (1998). Human memory: Theory and practice (Rev. ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn and

Bacon. Baddeley, A. (1999). Essentials of human memory. Hove: Psychology Press/Taylor & Francis. Byrnes, J. P. (2001). Minds, brains, and learning: Understanding the psychological and

educational relevance of neuroscientific research. New York: Guilford Press. Coffield, F., Moseley, D., Hall, E., & Ecclestone, K. (2004). Learning styles and pedagogy in

post-16 learning: A systematic and critical review. Learning and Skills Research Centre, Great Britain. (http://www.leerbeleving.nl/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/learning- styles.pdf)

Craik, F., & Tulving, E. (2004). Depth of processing and the retention of words in episodic memory. New York: Psychology Press.

Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. New York: Ballantine Books. Goodson, L. A. (2000, October). Teaching and learning strategies for complex thinking

skills. Paper presented at the National Convention of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology, Denver, Colorado.

Heikkila, A., & Lonka, K. (2006). Studying in higher education: Students‘ approaches to learning, self-regulation, and cognitive strategies. Studies in Higher Education, 31(1), 99–117.

Higbee, K. L. (1996). Your memory: How it works and how to improve it (2nd ed.). New York: Marlowe & Company.

Lorayne, H., & Lucas, J. (1996). The memory book (2nd ed.). New York: Ballantine Books, Inc. Marek, W. K. (2003). The seven sins of memory: How the mind forgets and remembers.

American Journal of Forensic Psychology, 21(2), 74–76. Nelson, G. D. (2005). Breaking the learning barrier for underachieving students: Practical

teaching strategies for dramatic results. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. Nilsson, L. G., & Ohta, N. (2006). Memory and society: Psychological perspectives. New York:

Psychology Press. Pashler, H., & Douglas, M. (2003). Steven’s handbook of experimental psychology (3rd ed.), Vol.

2: Memory and cognitive processes. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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Pashler, H., McDaniel, M., Rohrer, D., & Bjork, R. (2009). Learning styles: Concepts and evidence. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 9(3), 103–119.

Richards, R. G. (2003). The source for learning & memory strategies. East Moine, IL: Lingui Systems Inc.

Ryan, M. P., & Glenn, P. A. (2004). What do first-year students need most: Learning strategies instruction or academic socialization? Journal of College Reading and Learning, 34(2), 4–28.

Schacter, D. L. (2001). The seven sins of memory: How the mind forgets and remembers. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.

Schacter, D. L. (1999). The seven sins of memory: Insights from psychology and cognitive neuroscience. American Psychologist, 54(3), 182–203.

Smith, E. R., & Queller, S. (2004). Mental representations. In B. M. Brewer & M. Hewstone (Eds.), Social cognition: Perspectives on social psychology (pp. 5–27). Malden, MA, US: Blackwell Publishing.

Weiss, R. P. (2000). Memory and learning. Training & Development, 54(10), 46–50. Videos

Developing a great memory. (2003). [DVD]. (Available from Insight Media, 2162 Broadway,

New York, NY 10024-0621 or www.insight-media.com). It’s not a memory trick; it really works. (1998). [Video]. (Available from Insight Media, 2162

Broadway, New York, NY 10024-0621 or www.insight-media.com). Memory skills. (1992). [DVD]. (Available from Insight Media, 2162 Broadway, New York, NY

10024-0621 or www.insight-media.com). The study of memory. (1995). [Video]. (Available from Films for the Humanities & Sciences, PO

Box 2053, Princeton, NJ 08543-2053) VandenBos, G. R. (2002). Videos in Psychology: A resource directory. Washington, DC:

American Psychological Association. You’ve got great memory. (1999). [Video]. (Available from Insight Media, 2162 Broadway, New

York, NY 10024-0621 or www.insight-media.com).

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