Applying the Memory Principles

What follows is a discussion of the 10 memory principles. A list of memory principle and a brief explanation of can be found by linking to http://www.mtsu.edu/~studskl/mem.html

The first three principles can be placed in the category "Making an Effort to Remember":

Interest--Because we tend to remember more about things that interest us, students need to consider how to study subjects they don’t particularly like. If all else fails, remind students that they have an "interest" in graduating from college. However, they can hopefully develop a truer interest in the subjects they study. Many times, we find things boring or confusing because we don’t know much about them or because we only relate to dates or names in a textbook. Students should try to make information come alive, to make it personal in some way. Sometimes, finding a study partner or partners is a way to get interested in a course. The Memory Box Activity illustrated that "two or three" heads are better than one. We remember things that other students don’t, and likewise they may help us become interested in something they understood better than we. I also find that getting to know the professor is a good way to remain interested in a course.

Intention to Remember--When we are able to face each class or study session with a positive attitude about learning, we are much more likely to come away with new information. I suggest that students, for a while, try pausing outside the classroom door for a second or two and mentally reinforcing that they will pay attention to the lecture, be involved in class discussion, and take good notes.

Basic Background--It is much easier to learn information if we already have some knowledge of a subject. Sometimes, students find themselves in a class situation where they are bombarded with terms or concepts they find completely unfamiliar. When they are truly overwhelmed, they might need to withdraw and enroll in a course that provides more basic explanation. However, they might be able to catch up by talking with the professor and asking for some background information--a simpler textbook perhaps or a list of definitions of terms. Of course, students should be sure they complete and understand all reading assignments before class. In addition, they might find it helpful to form a study group with students from the class who seem to have more basic background.

The next group of memory principles encompasses "Controlling the Amount and Form of Information":

Selectivity--Students cannot succeed in college by trying to memorize all the information to which they are exposed. One of the most important things they can do is learn to select what is truly important. Certainly, students can look for obvious textbook clues: headings, bold or italicized print, questions, summaries, charts, graphs, and so forth. However, students can also look for ways in which their textbook reading and lecture notes coincide. In note-taking, students can learn to look for obvious cues, such as ideas presented visually as well as orally, but they can also learn to recognize important verbal cues. Good lecturers provide transitions as they move from one important point to another: first, second, third; in contrast, on the other hand; next, in addition, finally; for example, for instance.

Meaningful Organization--Since short-term memory can hold only five to seven bits of information at a time, students should learn to group information into meaningful categories. Before students complete the exercise in the textbook, you might have the class participate in the Memory Box Exercise outlined previously in this manual. Although the Memory Box illustrates all ten memory principles, it most graphically illustrates meaningful organization. Another organizational technique is the mnemonic device. I impress upon students that mnemonic devices are artificial tools and that their use does not guarantee actual long-term memory transfer, but sometimes such a device is an easy way to memorize something difficult for the short term. I am always amazed by the number of students who have not been exposed to mnemonics.

I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud

1. Analyze.

2. Develop a plan.

3. Perform the appropriate calculations.

4. Evaluate your answer.

1. The Pilgrims entertained 92 guests at the 1621 event.

2. The first Thanksgiving meal was breakfast.

3. Boiled eel, lobster, roasted pigeon, and stuffed cod were served at the meal.

4. The Indians brought turkeys, pumpkins, sweet potatoes, and cranberry sauce to the celebration.

5. The Pilgrims had their first taste of popcorn, which was prepared for them by the Indian brave Quadequina, son of Massasoit.

Next, students will learn principles for "Strengthening Memory" to help them transfer information to long-term memory and to insure that information in long-term memory can be retrieved:

Recitation--Saying information aloud is a powerful tool in the quest to learn new information. I remind students that we have all studied a page of notes or read a page in a book only to "wake up" and realize that we had been daydreaming and remembered nothing at all. Because everyone has had such an experience, it is easy to impress upon students that simply rereading something does not insure that we are learning it. Instead, students who use the label in margin system for taking notes or reading textbooks can use study time productively by "testing" themselves with recitation every time they study. If students know that they will have to recite an answer when they finish a paragraph, they will concentrate more. Forming the answer, saying the answer, and hearing the answer are activities that use different parts of the brain, and it would stand to reason that the more parts one uses, the more likely one is to remember something. Again, the immediate feedback of self testing that recitation promotes lets the student know if he knows the material or not.

Mental Visualization--Like recitation, visualization can be a powerful tool in memory. This can be as easy as making a mental picture of what we need to remember. Encourage students to put faces with names as they study history and to play mental videos. They could imagine, for instance, that they are inside a computer watching what happens with a particular keystroke. Here is an exercise that helps to reinforce that mental visualization is much more powerful than simple memorization.

Association--Students can also strengthen their memory capability by connecting new information to old. This method makes retrieval much easier. I try to give some personal examples to illustrate. I always remember my brother’s birthday because it’s the same as Pearl Harbor Day, Ronald Reagan was elected to a second term the year my husband and I were married, and so forth.

Finally, students need to learn the importance of "Allowing Time to Soak In":

Consolidation--Since it takes time for information to soak in, both study and review sessions are very important. Several other memory principles are involved in this process of consolidation. For example, as we select what is important, organize it meaningfully, recite it, visualize it, and associate it with something we already know, we are in essence giving that information time to soak it. Reviewing information, however, is especially important. This is where the transfer to long-term memory is fully accomplished, and this is how we insure that we can retrieve the information when we need it. Psychologists say that it takes at least 15 seconds for a new idea to soak in. Of course, the more complicated the idea, the longer it takes to soak in. I usually have the class sit in silence for a full 15 seconds so that they can actually feel how long 15 seconds is and realize that a lecturer may have covered several ideas in the amount of time that it takes for one idea to soak in, hence the need for note taking and other means of consolidation.

Distributed Practice--More frequent, but shorter study sessions are preferable for most people. We can only truly concentrate for short periods of time, so study sessions should be no longer than 50 minutes without a break. This is a good time for students to check their master schedules to be sure they are making the best use of their study time. There are times when massed practice may be preferable in completing a task, but distributed practice usually works best in processing information.