“Memory is the process of maintaining information over time.

” (Matlin, 2005)
“Memory is the means by which we draw on our past experiences in order to use this
information in the present’ (Sternberg, 1999).
Memory is the term given to the structures and processes involved in the storage
and subsequent retrieval of information.
Memory is essential to all our lives. Without a memory of the past, we cannot
operate in the present or think about the future. We would not be able to
remember what we did yesterday, what we have done today or what we plan to do
tomorrow. Without memory, we could not learn anything.
Memory is involved in processing vast amounts of information. This information
takes many different forms, e.g. images, sounds or meaning.

For psychologists the term memory covers three important aspects of

1. Memory Encoding
When information comes into our memory system (from sensory input), it needs
to be changed into a form that the system can cope with, so that it can be stored.
Think of this as similar to changing your money into a different currency when
you travel from one country to another. For example, a word which is seen (in a
book) may be stored if it is changed (encoded) into a sound or a meaning (i.e.
semantic processing).
There are three main ways in which information can be encoded (changed):
1. Visual (picture)
2. Acoustic (sound)
3. Semantic (meaning)
For example, how do you remember a telephone number you have looked up in
the phone book? If you can see it then you are using visual coding, but if you are
repeating it to yourself you are using acoustic coding (by sound).
Evidence suggests that this is the principle coding system in short-term memory
(STM) is acoustic coding. When a person is presented with a list of numbers and
letters, they will try to hold them in STM by rehearsing them (verbally).
Rehearsal is a verbal process regardless of whether the list of items is presented
acoustically (someone reads them out), or visually (on a sheet of paper).
The principle encoding system in long-term memory (LTM) appears to be
semantic coding (by meaning). However, information in LTM can also be coded
both visually and acoustically.

2. Memory Storage
This concerns the nature of memory stores, i.e., where the information is stored,
how long the memory lasts for (duration), how much can be stored at any time
(capacity) and what kind of information is held.
The way we store information affects the way we retrieve it. There has been a
significant amount of research regarding the differences between Short Term
Memory (STM ) and Long Term Memory (LTM).
Most adults can store between 5 and 9 items in their short-term memory. Miller
(1956) put this idea forward and he called it the magic number 7. He though that
short-term memory capacity was 7 (plus or minus 2) items because it only had a
certain number of “slots” in which items could be stored.
However, Miller didn’t specify the amount of information that can be held in each
slot. Indeed, if we can “chunk” information together we can store a lot more
information in our short-term memory. In contrast, the capacity of LTM is
thought to be unlimited.
Information can only be stored for a brief duration in STM (0-30 seconds), but
LTM can last a lifetime.

3. Memory Retrieval
This refers to getting information out storage. If we can’t remember something,
it may be because we are unable to retrieve it. When we are asked to retrieve
something from memory, the differences between STM and LTM become very
clear.
STM is stored and retrieved sequentially. For example, if a group of participants
are given a list of words to remember, and then asked to recall the fourth word on
the list, participants go through the list in the order they heard it in order to
retrieve the information.
LTM is stored and retrieved by association. This is why you can remember what
you went upstairs for if you go back to the room where you first thought about it.
Organizing information can help aid retrieval. You can organize information in
sequences (such as alphabetically, by size or by time). Imagine a patient being
discharged from hospital whose treatment involved taking various pills at various
times, changing their dressing and doing exercises.
If the doctor gives these instructions in the order which they must be carried out
throughout the day (i.e., in the sequence of time), this will help the patient
remember them.

Auditory learning is one of the three learning styles established by the VAK model
of learning. In essence, auditory learners retain information best when it is
presented through sound and speech.

Auditory learners generally remember what their teacher says and readily
participate in class. They are good listeners and often very social, which means
they can sometimes get distracted from the lesson by everything else going on in
the classroom. Auditory learning methods range from studying with voice
recordings to memorizing vocabulary words by inventing short songs.

Auditory Learning Strategies

The visual learning style, often referred to as the spatial learning style, is a way
of learning in which information is associated with images. This learning style requires
that learners first see what they are expected to know. People with a visual learning style are
often referred to as visual-spatial learners.
Visual learning is a style in which a learner utilizes graphs, charts, maps and diagrams. It is one of
the three basic types of learning styles in the Fleming VAK/VARK model that also includes
kinesthetic learning and auditory learning.