Some Working Memory Representaions: Workbenches from http://www.flickr.com/photos/7ggk/favorites/
Making Airplanes Constructing Something Designing Jewelry
http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1222377
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What kinds of strategies do you use to keep all the information/ideas on the workbench while you are working?For example, if you were writing an essay, you might want to consider the following strategies:
1) Retrieve the relevant information from LTM? ^Do you have a Folder labeled "Writing" with pages for different genre? ^Do you have an example file stored in LTM ^Do you have a rubric stored in LTM or the location of such a file/page.
What if you don't have the information/ideas you need stored in LTM? ^Do you have available complarable examples you can work from?
2) Control what you can. ^Use a hard copy template for essay writing. ^Write down the directions. ^Set up your computer for easy screen switching if possible. ^Work in a quiet space without distractions that could "capture" your attention and use up a "slot."
3) Use checklists or cue cards to help you stay on track.
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Stop and Record, Think About, and/or Elaborate what you've read so far. |
You are assigned the task of Writing an Essay about the Costs/Benefits of the American Revolution from the perspectivesof family members where one person is a Loyalist and one is a Revolutionary.
From Long Term Memory you have to retrieve
1. What it means to write an essay
2. within an historic framework (credibility of sources is important)
3. An overview of the American Revolution
4. including our knowlede of what and how Loyalist and Revolutionary figures might think about costs/benefits.
From Short Term Memory we have to retrieve
1. The directions including (a) format to use, (b) due date, (c) possible resources.
2. Where we left our writing notebook we just had.
Keeping your Memory Manager working to:
1. Keep track of the resources you need.
2. Choosing and Monitoring strategies
3. Searching for a new Strategy if the present one isn't working.
4. Finding ways to ignore or avoid unwanted distractions.
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Stop and Record, Think About, and/or Elaborate what you've read so far. |
Many cognitive psychologists think that the average adult can "pay attention to" 5-9 "items" on their workbench while they do a task. Of course, if you are under 18 (not an "adult") your average working memory span would be more like 4+/- 2 (So 2-6) items). There are two important tools for maximizing your working memory span: (1) Changing what you can pack into an "item/slot". and (2) Doing a good job of memory management.
(1) Item packing. An "item" is whatever will fit into a memory slot. For example: the following list could be 9 items or 3. Grapes, soap, bread, cookies, bananas, sunblock, shampoo, pie, watermellon. (Fruit, Personal Care Items, Baked Goods) When you put "items" into some kind of superstructure (a semantic map, tree diagram, outline), you can use the titles and subtitles to act as slots.
So, for example, I can package "items" into the following slots:
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Remembering Oveview (slot) |
Managing Memory (slot)
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Memory Strategies (LTM) (slot)
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(2) Memory Management. Learn to develop and use your Memory Management skills.
See the Memory Management page if you forgot what Memory Management is.
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Stop and Record, Think About, and/or Elaborate what you've read so far. |