Memory Functions and Learning

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the function of the human memory. It focuses on how memory is essential to learning and learning is the foundational goal of education. The paper also discusses how the understanding of the implications of the personal, of imagery, of sound and of movement into the repertoire of the memory will create a holistic learning process that fosters memory, even of the most arbitrary nature.

From the Paper:

"Historical emphasis has been on the first distinction, that of procedural and declarative memory, because for the most part the kinds of memories or learning one receives in school are not associated with the personal, they are memories that most if not all people are believed to need to survive and prosper. Yet, developmentally, young children especially are driven by the personal, the perspective of the self as center, but to some degree we all are. It is for this reason that new inroads are being made in to the idea that memory should be associated with the personal to be effective. Regardless of the historical attempts to create uniformity in learning and attempt to associate all scholarly learning with the abstract, a situation that is contrary to human psychology, many people are much more likely to remember even the most abstract concepts from a personal perspective of context and autobiographic details. So, instead of fighting nature why not embrace it and teach abstract concepts in a way that they are associated with positive personal growth. People are also likely to remember the manner in which they did not learn a concept that was deemed crucial as well, from a personal perspective. Educators would do well to seek out these memories and replay them in their own memory, so as to better understand why certain situations did not foster learning."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Antoine, Marie, Shannon Donald, and Carolyn C. Cox. 2003. "Are Students Throwing Away Nutrition?." Journal of Research in Childhood Education 17:230.
• Arnold, Magda B. 1984. Memory and the Brain. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Chance, P. A. 1999. Learning and Behavior. New York: AIPI.
• Das, J. P. 1989. "Good and Poor Readers' Word Naming Time, Memory Span, and Story Recall." Journal of Experimental Education 57:101-114.
• Fahey, John A., and Gilberto De Los Santos. 2002. "Memory Improvement and Research Related to the Science of Memory." Education 123:380.
• Greene, Robert L. 1992. Human Memory: Paradigms and Paradoxes. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

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