Brunning – Chapter 2
Sensory, Short Term and Working
Memory
Modal Model


General model of memory
Information processing model
Sensory
Memory
Attention
Short
Term
Memory
Rehearsal or “act on it”
Assumptions:
1) Memory systems are functionally separate
2) Attention is limited
3) Processes are both controlled and automatic
4) Meaning is constructed
Information
transferred
from stage to
stage
Long Term
Memory
* Declarative
Knowledge
* Procedural
Knowledge
* Conditional
Knowledge

Pros:




Help us understand the different memory
components
Model has generated massive amount of
research that contribute to theory and
practice
Distinction between structures and
processes
Cons:



There is better assumptionmemory
consists of many small interrelated parts
Memory formation is not linear
This theory refers as one integrated network
of interconnected neurons
Sensory Memory and Perception
Stores
Stores
S
T
I
M
Senses
Attention
STM
Pattern
Recognition
Act
U
L
i
Meaning
Decay
Working
Memory
LTM
Sensory Register:
Most research done on vision and hearing

Vision (Sperling,
1960)


People register a
great deal of
information
If attention is
paid and
meaning is
associated with
stimuli, then
information is
stored

Hearing (Darwin,
1972)


The length of
stimuli
presentation
affects the ability
to retain
information
Storage of
information
increases with age
Implications for teaching:
1) Limit the amount of information
2) Present information both visually and auditorally
3) Practice

The Role of Knowledge and Context in
Perception




Prior knowledge influence perception
Knowledge also influence how do we look for
things
Prior knowledge builds schematas and scripts
Context affects what we look for and perceive:




I walked into the quiet wood
He threw the wood to the fire
The man got good wood on the play
Attention





Is the person’s allocation of cognitive resources
to the task at hand
Human beings are severely limited to the number
of stimuli to pay attentionmyth of multitasking
Is the fuel of learning
Individuals pay attention depending on the
context of the task
The more resources you provide to the student to
accomplish the task, the better their performance

Automatic Processes
(Automaticity)





Require few resources
Require little or no attention to their
execution
Are acquired through extended practice
The existence of automatic processes
explain how some people can carry out
complex tasks or perform simultaneous
task (reading for meaning vs. reading
for word recognition)
At the beginning of a learning activity
the students’ performance will be
awkward and slowstudent is learning
how to use facts
Short Term and Working Memory


Is the place where information is
processed for meaning
Capacity



7 +/-2 bits
Better to allocate information into
chunks and increase the size of these
chunks (chunking strategies) slowly
Duration


Depends on the amount of time between
the presence of the stimuli and the time
to rememberdecay or interference
To avoid this…rehearsal

Accessing information (Sternberger,
1975)





List of few letters
Time passes
Longer list of letters and individual had to
match those letters that were presented
before
The first task at hand was whether the
letters were searched in a serial (1 by 1)
or parallel manner (simultaneously)
The second task at hand was whether the
search ended when the letter was found
(self terminated) or exhaustive (the
entire list was searched even if the letter
was found at the beginning)
Working Memory (Baddeley 1986)
Executive Control
System
Functions:
•Selecting information
•Planning
•Transfer of information
Articulatory Loop
Functions:
•Auditory rehearsal
•Articulation
process
Critics:
STM
STM
STM
STM
Visual-Spatial Sketch
Pad
Functions:
•Visual rehearsal
•Spatial comparisons
closely tied with LTM and is affected by it
is active (working) rather than just holding information
essential for self regulation
best viewed as domain specific

Cognitive Load Theory (expansion of
Baddeley’s work)

Some learning environments impose greater
demands, thus there is a need for higher
information processing load—these are caused:
Intrinsic cognitive load (properties of the to-be
learned information)cannot be changed
 Extraneous cognitive load—way information is
presented or the task requiredcan be changed


This theory states that there are 3 constraints
on the efficiency of the learner:
Characteristics of the learner (capacity of STM)
 Complexity of the to-be learned information
 Instructional environment (chunking, advanced
organizers, etc. are helpful)

Implications for Instruction


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Information processing is constrained by
a bottleneck in sensory and short term
memory
Automaticity facilitates learning by
reducing resource limitations
Perception and attention are guided by
prior knowledge
Perception and attention are flexible
processes (context)
Resources and data limitations constrain
learning
All students should be encouraged to
manage their resources
(METACOGNITION)
Information processing is easier when to
be learned information is distributed in
the working memory.
Based on this chapter and as a group,
introduce one research
question that you are interested in
answering…perhaps as your research
paper