Download STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVING MEMORY File

Improving memory


Describe various strategies for improving
memory
Understand how such strategies are related to
memory research






Memory theories can be used to help us improve our
memories
NOTE THAT ‘MNEMONIC’ IS A GENERAL TERM
FOR ANY STRATEGY – DO NOT REFER TO IT AS A
SPECIFIC STRATEGY.
Organisation is a key factor
Several techniques have been devised (mnemonics)
and include the peg-word system, method of loci and
the keyword system.
Effective retrieval can depend on how information was
encoded
Active processing seems to be more effective than rote
learning i.e. understanding is better than rehearsal




Deese (1959)
Which of the following lists is likely to have
better recall?
Butterfly, moth, insect, wing, bird, fly, yellow,
net, pretty, flower, bug, cocoon, colour,
stomach, blues, bees
Table, basket, grass, paper, tiger, kettle, boat,
sound, tent, lorry, cupboard, ball, clock, leaf,
phone, shirt


If we have organised information or if there is a
schema attached.
You should take advice because more
expensive is not always better. It is important
to try out different types before making a
decision as individuals have preferences and it
has to feel right. Posture is also important as
this can cause back problems so it is a good
idea to have the right chair or stool. Once you
have decided it is important to protect it from
extreme temperature as this can have an effect.
It is also good to keep it dust-free.


If given the title
It may be easier to recall the information rather
than learning it all by rote.


Think of a familiar route (around your house or
the walk to school)
Link each of the images with something on the
route



How many times can you use the same route or
loci for different things?
Can you recall each item straightaway or do
you have to trace out the whole route?
It takes time to perfect this method.






Godden and Baddeley (1975)
The place where material is learnt can affect
recall.
Underwater divers learnt wordlists either on
dry land or under water.
Recall was better in the same context.
This is the encoding specificity principle.
Things are recalled better if the retrieval
context is the same as the encoding context.










One bun
Two shoe
Three tree
Four door
Five hive
Six sticks
Seven heaven
Eight gate
Nine line
Ten hen



Learn the peg words
Visualise the items to be remembered and
imagine them interacting with the item of the
appropriate number, e.g. fish in a bun, apples
in a shoe etc.
Try the following list










Eggs
Bread
Biscuits
Tomatoes
Potatoes
Cheese
Jam
Pasta
Juice
cornflakes

Try to recall these in
about an hour






Initial rhyme has to be learnt by rote
This involves more effort than when using loci
because the route is already known
Interference will occur if used for more than
one list
Fairly slow as the list has to be repeated
Abstract words are difficult to use e.g. hope in
a tree?
Needs extensive practice.






ACRONYM
Take the first letter of the items you are trying to
remember and make a new word out of them.
E.g. BRASS is used to remember how to shoot a
rifle: Breathe, Relax, Aim, Sight, Squeeze
ACROSTIC
Similar to acronym, but instead of making a word
out of the first letters, you make a sentence.
E.g. My Very Educated Mother Just Sent Us Nine
Pizzas to learn the order of the planets: Mercury,
Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus,
Neptune and Pluto.







Devise an experiment to test any of these
strategies.
What is the:
aim
hypothesis?
design
independent variable
dependent variable?





1. What is meant by mnemonics? 1 mark
2. Give an example of a mnemonic? 2 marks
3. What is visual imagery?
1 mark
4. why is it important for us to understand the
material we are trying to learn?
2 marks
5. Explain how the encoding specificity
principle can help us to improve memory?
2 marks