Is Your Memory Working for You?

What do your remember from the Remembering Overview page?

Write your thoughts on your Personal Page so you can review them later. 

Then, return to this page. 

 Your Memory Manager (sometimes called MetaMemory) has a big job. It has to plan, monitor, and evaluate stratgy choice and use.

^Memory Management

^Long Term Memory

^Working Memory

^Short Term Memory

Long Term Memory

The Memory Manager (MM) has to work on storage and retrieval of information/ideas or stories in LTM

If those LTM items were not stored in a way that makes them strong and easy to find, you will have a hard time retrievingthem.  You'll learn more about LTM from looking at the Memory Strategies page.

Examples of LTM:  Essay on Global Warming, overview  of a Chapter on the American Revolution, The story of Goldilocks, a schema for "restaurant."  These give you the Big Picture and some of the details.

Working Memory 

^The MM has to plan, monitor and evaluate the strategies you use to make sure your Working Memory (WM) is actually working so that you can pay attention to a few items at a time. WM you might remember has limited space. Some psychologists say that adults (over 18) can hold on to between 5 and 9 "items" at a time.  So, as an adolescent, the WM span might be 3-5 "items."  For your WM to work, it has to be able to pay attention to

(a) "items" of information from LTM and

(b) "items" of information from STM, and

(c) the operation or problem solving "items" it is trying to work out, and

(d) ignore irrelevant information from capturing or highjacking your attention.

(e)   manage this whole memory system.

Your learn more about WM on the WM  strategies page.  It will be really important to learn what is meant by "item."

Examples of WM:  Taking notes on a class lecture, solving math problems for homework, comparing opinions on the editorial pages of a newspaper, trying to apply the directions for embedding a plugin on your wiki.

Short Term Memory 

^The MM has to plan, monitor, and evaluate strategies for keeping memories in Short Term Memory (STM) long enough to use them.  Short term memory is really short...a few second.  So, you have to do something with that information to keep it active. Have you ever tried to remember a 10 digit (long distance) telephone number, directions (for an assignment or how to get some place.)  Those are examples of short term memory.  If there are more than a few "items" you'll need to keep repeating them to yourself (rehearing them) or write them down to "hold" onto them.

So,  if you want your memory to work for you, you need to tune into your metamemory and take charge. 

Memory Overview

LTM Strategies

WM Strategies

STM Strategies

Mnemonics 

Front Page

Glossary