2010-2011 STEM BURSARY REPORT:
Mrs Ann Clements. Thornfield House School and Outreach Services
Professional Development Activity - Working Memory and Learning.
As children with speech and language impairments usually have poor visual and / or
auditory memory, I was interested to learn how another element of memory, that is,
working memory, could affect the academic progress of this group of children?
I contacted Dr. Tracy Packiam Alloway, the Director of the Centre for Memory and Learning
in the Lifespan at the University of Stirling, who has published many articles and books on
Working Memory and Learning and has carried out several large scale studies to investigate
the impact of working memory difficulties on learning. She has deduced that working
memory is the foundation of learning and is in fact the strongest predictor of learning
outcomes.
Dr Alloway agreed to speak to the staff of Thornfield House School via a video link
conference. Her presentation was entitled “Working Memory and Learning.” This allowed all
staff (teachers, classroom assistants and speech and language therapists) to share the
experience, gain knowledge and become aware of the problems faced by children with poor
working memory.
The following questions were addressed and discussed;
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What is “Working Memory”?
Why is it so important for academic progress?
What impact will poor working memory have on a pupil’s ability to access the
curriculum?
Can working memory be improved through training?
If working memory can be improved, will this transfer to academic attainment?
How can a child with poor working memory be identified?
What strategies should be followed to help children with poor working memory cope
in the classroom?
Outcomes in terms of improved practice.
I now have a deeper understanding and knowledge of the impact of poor working memory
on learning.
Working memory is the ability to store and process information over a short period of time.
What is contained in our working memory may come from what we see, or hear, or from
what we already know and is being held in our long term memory.
Working memory is essential for curricular activities from mental arithmetic, reading
comprehension and even seemingly simple tasks such as copying from a board.
Working memory measures the potential to learn and, by training working memory,
improvements can be seen in academic attainment.
I recognise the main characteristics of children with poor working memory and the
difficulties they face in the classroom. These difficulties include;
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failing to follow multi-step instructions
struggling with activities that combine storing and processing information
problems in keeping track of their place in complex tasks
inability to stay on a task and difficulty in maintaining attention
presenting as unmotivated, inattentive or easily distracted
More specifically, children may have difficulty;
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remembering the beginning of a sentence, paragraph or story in order to understand
the meaning of the whole
organising sounds, words, sentences or stories
remembering grammatical rules
learning new vocabulary and concepts
note taking or copying from the board
learning and retrieving mathematical facts and applying these to problem solving
rote learning
Benefits in pupils’ learning experiences.
Now, in planning and teaching I am mindful of the problems which pupils with poor working
memory face, and structure lessons accordingly.
Activities within lessons are modified to reduce working memory loads;
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by using shorter sentences or by reducing the number of steps in an instruction
by simplifying the grammatical structure of sentences
by breaking down complex or multi-step tasks into separate independent units
I incorporate strategies to train working memory in teaching sessions, encouraging pupils to;
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ask for information to be repeated if necessary
listen for information carrying words within sentences
rehearse items using inner speech
classify and categorise information to form links with existing knowledge
visualise information to be remembered
organise information through mind maps
link sounds to actions / colour coding / story links
Other lesson activities are aimed at developing good visual, attention and listening skills.
Reflections.
I am grateful to the GTC NI for granting a STEM bursary enabling me to learn more about
“Working Memory.” I believe the whole experience has extended my knowledge and hence
effectiveness as a teacher of children with Speech Language Impairments. As an outreach
teacher, supporting children at Stage 3c and Stage 5 of the Code of Practice in mainstream
schools, I hope I can share this knowledge with classroom teachers and SENCos.
I especially enjoyed speaking to Dr. Alloway, who was generous with her time and sharing
knowledge. In 2009 Dr. Alloway was awarded the prestigious Joseph Lister Award from the
British Science Association for bringing her scientific discoveries to a wide audience and in
February 2011 that audience included the staff of a small school in Whiteabbey.
I owe a huge “thank you” to my colleague Mrs Linda Cooke and the Technical Support
Officer from C2K, without whom the conference would not have taken place.
Future plans / Suggestions for future development. (September 2011)
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Baseline assessment of the working memory of all pupils in Thornfield House School,
using Standardised Working Memory Tests.
Baseline assessment of the working memory of pupils on the Outreach Service
caseload, using Standardised Working Memory Tests, where appropriate.
Investigation of appropriate cognitive training resources to improve the working
memory of pupils in Thornfield House School and, where appropriate, those on the
Outreach Caseload.
Assessment of improvement in working memory after cognitive training.
Assessment of improvement in attainments after cognitive training.
A study is to be undertaken by Dr. Tracy Alloway, on the impact of poor working
memory on children with Speech and Language Impairments in Thornfield House
School.