Module 11 is basically explaining the different ways are
memory works. It explains the use of our
sensory memory, which relates to our senses.
These memories only last about one second before they’re lost unless we
can convert them into our working memory through attention and perception. Information from our working memory is either
lost or stored in our long-term memory, which can later be retrieved. It’s important for teachers to understand the
different processes that will help students learn and remember the information
best. It’s wise to consider not only
what the students are learning, but how they can best process the information
and truly understand the meaning of what they’re learning. Teachers must also understand that students’
sensory and working memories are very dependent on the student’s developmental
levels. As a person develops, they’re
able to gain a larger capacity for retaining information, they also have more
information that is now automatic and no longer needs to be rehearsed or
practiced. Teachers should help students
pay attention by engaging students in a lesson plan with variety, directing
students to the main ideas and key points that they should remember, using a
variety of instructional methods, role playing, interaction with the content by
taking notes or making flow charts, and asking verbal questions. By aiding
students in organization, understanding the main idea or big concepts, and
focusing on the relevance of what they are learning are some of the most
effective ways to help students retrieve information. The more the students are engaged, the easier
it is for a teacher to help them effectively learn.
When do children start to develop a larger working memory?
According to the information processing theory learning is
not focused on external behaviors, but focused on the internal mental processes
that occur when learning. Processes
include selecting and attending to the environment around us, the rehearsal of
information, ability to relate new information with previous knowledge, and the
ability to organize knowledge learned and be able to use it or make it
meaningful.
People forget things for three main reasons including
failure to encode the information correctly therefore it never actually is
stored in our long-term memory. The
“forgetting curve” named by Ebbinghaus is another reason we forget, as we learn
new information it starts to decay. The
last main reason why we forget it the inability to retrieve stored information,
we may have learned it, but can’t seem to recall it from our memory. Interference is another main concept in
forgetting or why we sometimes can’t retrieve stored information. There is proactive interference in which our
prior knowledge makes it hard for us to learn new knowledge. The opposite of that is the retroactive
interference in which the new things we learn can cause us forget our prior
knowledge.
From a neuroscience point of view, I think children begin developing a larger working memory as the neurons in their brain make more connections and become more myelinated. The brain is constantly developing in a child from birth to age 21 or 22, so the more information that is going into the brain, the more mental connections are made.
ReplyDeleteFrom an information processing point of view, I think a child begins developing a larger working memory by making physical connections. The more a child learns, the more he is able to make connections with previous knowledge. For example, a child will learn his numbers when he is 4, and he will learn to add when he is 6, and will eventually learn to multiply and divide when he is 10. He is able to build upon his previous knowledge, thus affecting his working memory and expanding the ability to remember and learn more.
I think that we never at full capacity until we have fully stopped growing and developing which is roughly in some peoples 20s. But, this does not mean that we are incapable of learning a lot of information and being able to apply that knowledge. Also I think that the brain is like any other muscle in our body and someone can work on making themselves have a higher capacity of holding knowledge by simply reading and challenging their brains. If you do not challenge your brain you will not be using a lot of your brain synapses. By using these synapses you make them faster and stronger thus developing your brain not faster, but stronger.
ReplyDeleteWell, the working memory capacity never really changes. Even as a child, you'll still have the same amount of chunks or bits that you're capable of processing.... It's just a limit of how our minds work. There's a lot of discussion of the brain here, and I want to make sure you know that's not (strictly) what the IP model is describing. It's just a theoretical model and not necessarily tied to neuroscience in any way. As a child gets older, he'll be much more capable of chunking efficiently so that he can think about more information at the same time, but it will still be (in total) 7-10 bits of information. So, in doing a complex math problem, he will probably chunk it into 7 meaningful bits and work on each piece--the same about of bits in a simple problem a child looks at all at once (7+7+7=21)<<7 symbols.
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