Memory refers to the ability of one to encode information, store it, and be able to recall the information. Memory directly affects how individuals learn. Knowledge is a form of memory. The manner in which humans process knowledge determines their performance levels through different levels. The aim of this paper is to expound the cognitive-based ideologies which explain the working of memory development and how outside variables affect the development process. The strategies that can be used to improve one’s information processing to make it effective will also be explained. Lastly, the paper will demonstrate an understanding of psychological research methods and skeptical inquiry by correctly utilizing support resources within my writing.
Memory Development and its Relation to Knowledge Acquisition
The information can be in the form of past experiences. Three years after a child is born, its memory begins to develop. The memory constantly continues to develop through stages as the child gets older. There are three stages of memory development. The first stage is the sensory memory which morphs to the second stage which is the short-term memory. The second stage then transitions to the last stage which is the long-term memory. The short-term memory has cognitive aspects that allow it to handle a limited amount of information for a limited period. Another cognitive process is attention which involves processing the information that is within one’s surrounding and filtering out the ones considered irrelevant. To add to this, another cognitive process that closely relates to attention is perception. An individual’s perception refers to how well the person interprets the information obtained.
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As an individual grows, the autobiographical memory which is responsible for storing information related to the individual’s specific details and major past experiences also develops. The long-term memory has different kinds of memories under it. All of the different kinds of memories are stored under separate domains and change differently in individuals. The long term memory is less cognitive and allows a person to store information permanently as well as manage and retrieve it as desired.
Moving Information from Working Memory to Long-term Memory
The final stage of memory development is the transfer of information from the working memory, also known as the short term memory, to long-term memory. This transition ensures that information is stored in a way that it can be retrieved in the future for reference. This stage is as crucial as the learning stage as it requires the learner to organize the information that has been obtained based on meaning before storing it in the long-term memory (Rosser-Majors, n.d.) . Just brushing over information is a poor technique when trying to store information in the long term memory. The more one repeatedly goes over a piece of information, the more likely it is for the information to be stored in the long-term memory. The process of constantly repeating information to ensure that it is stably held in the memory after it has been acquired is called consolidation. The consolidation process has a few benefits. First, it enables one to reflect on past experiences. Secondly, the information holder attains the power to reuse past and present experiences. Lastly, it ensures continuity as one can connect between what was previously happening to what will happen in the future. To store the information in the long term memory, three processes are involved. The first process is encoding where information is converted into a form that the memory can easily store. The second process is the actual storage during which the information is maintained in its coded form. The final process is the retrieving process where the encoded information that had been stored is re-accessed (Savage & Monica, 2018) .
Strategies to move Knowledge into the long term memory
There are several activities that can be employed to ensure the information is retained will by the brain. The first activity is repetition. The learner can repeatedly recall the information by going through quizzes using flashcards or practicing using practice problems. Secondly, through elaboration, the brain remembers information by thinking of concepts or examples that were related to the information. Elaboration refers to the process of trying to find the connection between prior information and new information. The third activity is the use of organizational schemas. The brain loves patterns and naturally seeks it. Storing information in the form of a pattern or making associations between ideas makes the brain remember the ideas and information quite quickly. Moreover, the learner can choose to create a stronger memory by using other modes such as auditory, kinesthetic, and visual senses. Storing information in several senses makes it easier to recall. Finally, periods of sleep and breaks are crucial for the health of the long-term memory segment of our bodies. Spacing out the time taken to study and taking a rest between the sessions designated for studying is an effective way of effectively engaging study (The Memory Process, in Four Fantastic Nutshells, n.d.) .
Role of Attention and Perception in Schema Development
Attention is a process that involves the competitions by signals to access the limited computing resources of the brain. Part of the competition takes a bottom-up influence whereas another part takes a top-down influence. The latter influence can be improved if the attention model used is simplified and the brain was given access to the model. The schematic model constructed by the brain for it to improve how it approaches the top-down influence is known as the attention schema. From this explanation, it is evident that one can, at times, disassociate attention and awareness. This is advantageous as it is impossible for the internal models to be perfect and hence the model that is actually formed is different from the ideal model. Secondly, it explains how it is possible for one to be aware of the events going on both internally and externally. The brain has the capability to apply attention to different types of information at once (Michael S. S. Graziano, 2015) .
The brain seeks patterns naturally. If one connects ideas, then the information related to the ideas will be easily remembered. The connections formed create a structure that is associated and that one can easily remember compared to random facts. Techniques to creating these structures include coming up with a study guide, creating a concept map, contrasting ideas and having a defined study technique help to come up with organizational schemas.
Types of Memories and Their Effects
There are different types of long-term memory. Three of them will be discussed. The first is semantic memory. This is the part of memory that remembers factual information. For instance, it stores the name of the capital of a country of the first president of a country. The semantic memory is antagonistic to the episodic memory which is the part of memory that stores personal experiences. An example of personal experience is the events that took place during one’s birthday party or during a football match. Another type of long-term memory is the autobiographical memory which stores information about oneself and personal experiences. The information being talked about includes the facts that make one unique, the facts of one’s life, the experiences that one has had and mainly those that have shaped him/her, and emotions that could change one’s moods (Holland & Kensinger, 2010) . Other types of memories that are antagonistic to each other include implicit and explicit memories, and declarative and procedural memories.
How False Memory Development Affects Effective Learning
False memory is a phenomenon in which the brain recollects information that was not actually stored in it. This kind of memory occurs when a person develops emotions towards something or gets misinformed. In other cases, misattributions and information that has been implanted by other people or events purposefully may lead to false memory. Everyone is susceptible to false memory. The human mind may perceive things the way it wants to and not the way things actually are. Our brains sometimes have the tendency to only recall some parts of certain happenings and store them in the long-term memory depending on one’s experiences. This makes everyone not immune to false memories. Since effective learning highly depends on the efficiency of the long term memory, false memories negatively affect it.
In conclusion, the direct relationship between effective learning and memory development has been pointed out. The performance of an individual occurs at different levels and is fully based on how well the person processes information. Cognitive-based ideologies, more specifically how they affect term memory more than the long term memory, have been outlined. Other outside variables such as false memories and the effect they have on memory development have been discussed. Finally, the ways that one could use to improve information processing have been outlined.
References
Holland, A. C., & Kensinger, E. A. (2010, March 7). Emotion and Autobiographical Memory. Phys Life Rev , 88-131. doi:10.1016/j.plrev.2010.01.006
Michael S. S. Graziano, T. W. (2015, April 23). The attention schema theory: a mechanistic account of subjective awareness. Frontiers in Psychology , 6. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00500
Rosser-Majors, M. L. (n.d.). Theories of learning: An exploration . Retrieved from Ashford University Library: https://content.ashford.edu
Savage, & Monica. (2018, April 2). The Role Of Memory In Learning: How Important Is It? Retrieved from eLearning Industry: https://elearningindustry.com/role-of-memory-in-learning
The Memory Process, in Four Fantastic Nutshells . (n.d.). Retrieved from Oregon State University: https://success.oregonstate.edu/learning/memory-process-four-fantastic-nutshells
