memory model: getting the facts straight

Concepts about memory

These six concepts are essentially principles and technicques for enhancing our memory of learning material.

Awareness. Before we can remember anything we must give attention to, or concentrate on, the thing or idea to be remembered. “Observation is essential to original awareness.” According to Lorayne and Lucas, anything which we are originally aware of cannot be forgetten.

Association. The basic memory rule is “you can remembered any new piece of information if it is associated to something you already know or remember.” Lorayne and Lucas give two examples of the basic memory rule that most of us will probably recognize. The line of the music staff, EBGDF, are often thaugh by asking students to remember the sentence, every good boy does fine. To help students remember the spelling of piece, teacher will give a cue a piece of pie.

Link system. The heart of the memory procedure is connecting two ideas, with the second idea triggering yet another one, and so on. For example, if you want to remember the following five words: house glove, chair, stove, tree, you should imagine a usual picture, first with a house and a glove, then with a glove and a tree. For example, in the first picture you might imagine a glove opening the front door of a house greeting a family of gloves. The second picture might be a tree with gloves hanging like fruit. Taking the time to concentrate making up these images and then to visualize them will force original awareness.

Most memory problem break down into entities of two. We want to associate names and dates of places, names and ideas, words and their meaning, or a fact that establishes a relationship between two ideas.

Ridiculous association. While it is true that association is the basis of memory, the strength of the association is enhanced if the image  is vivid and ririculous, imposible or illogical.  A tree laden with gloves are examples of ridiculous association.

There are several ways to make the association ridiculous. The first is to apply the rule of subtitution. If you have a car and a glove , picture the glove riding along instead of the car. Second, apply the out of proportion rule – make small thing gigantic, or make something large miniature – for example, a gigantic baseball glove driving along. The third means is the rule of exaggeration, especially by number. Picture millions of gloves parading down the street. Finally get ection into the association.  In this examples discussed earlier. The glove is ringing the doorbell and parading down the street.

Young children will have no difficulty imagining ridiculous associations, but making these images is harder as we get older and more logical.

The basic memory rule now needs to be revised slightly to incorporate the role of the absurd. It should read:

In order to remember any new piece of information. It must be associated to something you already know or remember in some ridiculous way.

Substitute word system. The Substitute word system is  a way of making “an intangible, tangible, and meaningfull.” It is quite simple. Merely take any word or phrase that seems abstract and “thing of someting that sounds like” or reminds you of, the abstract material and can be pictured in your mind. Remember when you used to say “ i will ask her”  in order to remember the state of alaska. If you want to remember the name darwin you might visualize a dark wind. The concept of force can be represented by a fork. The picture you construct represent words, thoughts, or phrases.

Key word. The essence of the keyword system is to select the word to represent a longer thought or several subordinate thoughts. Boris’s speech is an example where one word would trigger many verbal statements. He chose key word is qualifications to represent a list of superior qualities. If as in his case, the key word is abstract, it is necessary to use the subtitute word system before inventing a memorable image.

The key word system is most useful for lengthly phrases as in a speech ortext material. Together with the subtitute word system and te link system, this system is all you  need for remembering  any material, however lenghtly, abstract, and complex.

Instructional and nurturant effects: memory model

Phase one: attending to the material

Use techniques of underlining, listing, reflecting.

Phase two: make material familiar and develop connection using key word, substitute word, and link system technique.

Phase three: expanding sensory images

Use techniques of ridiculous associations and exaggeration. Revise images.

Phase four: practicing recall

Practice recalling the material until it is completely learned.

Social system

The social system is cooperative. Teacher and students become a team working the new material together. The initiative should increasingly become the students as they obtain control over the strategy and use it to memorize ideas, words, and formulas.

Principles of reaction

The teacher helps the student identify key items, pairs, and images, offering suggestions but working from the students frame of references. The familiar elements must be primarily from the students storehouse of material.

Support system

All of the customary devices of the curriculum areas can be brought into play. Pictures, concrete aids, films, and other audiovisual materials are especially useful for increasing the sensory richness of the associations.