Remembering and forgetting

Introduction

The classroom experiences show that learners forget the information they acquire or learn. The
teacher is a witness that the majority of learners in most of the tests taken hardly ever get full
marks. The explanation for this phenomenon is that between the time material is learned or even
revised and the time the test is taken some information is lost through forgetting. In this unit, we
shall discuss why forgetting occurs as well as how memory can be improved.

Theories of forgetting

Experience in education depicts that some things are remembered well, others are “there” but
sometimes difficult to find. While still other things are completely forgotten. A good teacher
should know why this happens so that he can try and create conditions that promote memory all
the time. Different theories give different explanations as to what causes forgetting. The
following are some of the theories of forgetting:

i. The Behavioristic theory: The behaviorists developed the following explanations: The
disuse model and the interference model.
The Disuse Theory- This theory submits that people forget the S-R connections or
associations made previously because they grow rusty or fade away through lack of use.
This concept can be explained through the Pavlovian or Skinnerian experiments. In
Pavlov’s classical conditioning it refers to the withdrawal of reinforcement. If the food,
which served as the reinforcer to keep the association between the bell and the food alive,
was removed, extinction occurred. If the dog was subjected to this state for long i.e. the
bell ringing without the accompaniment of the food then the stimulus-response
connections were lost. In skinners operant conditioning if the rat continued to press the
bar without the accompaniment of food as a reinforcer this bar pressing behavior
disappeared because the connections or associations between it and food was lost.
This information can be applied in the classroom situation for the purpose of
helping the teacher to understand the dynamics involved in forgetting and
remembering. Just like Pavlov’s dogs and skinner’s rats would forget the S-R
associations they had learned, pupils too forget what they learn under similar principles.
To promote remembering the teacher needs to ensure that learned material is rehearsed
under conditions or reinforcement.
ii. Rehearsal: Learners who do not rehearse content often lose the S-R connection they had
learned. Rehearsing refers to the constant repetition and review of the content. For
rehearsal to benefit learners, the teacher should give them time and place to do their
rehearsal (study time).
Application: The teacher should also ensure that the learners rehearse content, which is
meaningful to them, because there is tendency to forget content if it is meaningless. There
 is the need to show learners how the content they are learning is related to what was
learned earlier. These activities help to stamp in the S-R connections already learned
keeping them alive and hence minimizing forgetting.
iii. Reinforcement: Remembering is best promoted if learning is reinforced. Withdrawal of
reinforcement causes extinction, which is the disappearance of the learned response. If a
learner displays the desirable behavior without being reinforced, forgetting occurs.
Application: The teacher should never lose sight of the fact that reinforcement
strengthens behavior and makes it more probable. Making it more probable means that
behavior is given the chance to occur again.
iv. Interference Model: This is another behaviorist explanation of forgetting. According to
this model learners forget content that they learn because other learning’s interference.
For example learners will forget old content because new content interferes with its
memory. When old content interferes with the memory of new content, we call this
proactive inhibition. If new content interferes with the memory of old content we refer to
this as retroactive inhibition.
Application: The teacher should take note that both retroactive and proactive
interference are greater when the items in memory are similar.
 Make new learning’s clear by bringing out the similarities and differences between the
old and new information.
 A learning task must be practiced until it is mastered and even over learned. The
principle is that partially learned tasks interfere more with other partially learned tasks.
 Over learning means going beyond the mastery of a task and ensuring that the content is
at the ‘finger tips’ this means that content can be recalled with ease.
v. Cognitive Explanation: According to the cognitive theory. The key to memory is the
way in which the material is coded and organized as it is stored in the long-term memory
bank. Something important happens at every stage of information processing to either
promote memory or forgetting. At the short-term sensory storage the key to memory at
this level is attention. For information to be retained in memory it should be focused on
and rehearsed briefly so as to be registered for further processing. Any information that is
not attended to is lost or forgotten.

MEMORY
Human memory, like memory in a computer, allows us to store information for later use.
In order to do this, however, both the computer and we need to master three processes
involved in memory. The first is called encoding; the process we use to transform
information so that it can be stores. For a computer this means transferring data into 1’s
and 0’s. For us, it means transforming the data into a meaningful form such as an
association with an existing memory, an image, or a sound.
Next is the actual storage, which simply means holding onto the information. For this to
take place, the computer must physically write the 1’ and 0’s onto the hard drive. It is
very similar for us because it means that a physiological change must occur for the
memory to be stored. The final process is called retrieval, which is bringing the memory
out of storage and reversing the process of encoding. In other words, return the
information to a form similar to what we stored.
The major difference between humans and computers in terms of memory has to do with
how the information is stored. For the most part, computers have only two types;
permanent storage and permanent deletion. Humans, on the other hand are more complex
in that we have three distinct memory storage capabilities (not including permanent
deletion).
The first is Sensory memory: referring to the information we receive through the senses.
This memory is very brief lasting only as much as a few seconds.
Short Term Memory (STM) takes over when the information in our sensory memory is
transferred to our consciousness or our awareness (Engle, Cantor, & Carullo, 1993;
Laming, 1992). This is the information that is currently active such as reading this page,
talking to a friend, or writing a paper. Short term memory can definitely last longer than
sensory memory (up to 30 seconds or so), but it still has a very limited capacity.
According to research, we can remember approximately 5 to 9 (7 +/- 2) bits of
information in our short term memory at any given time (Miller, 1956) If STM lasts only
up to 30 seconds, how do we ever get any work done? Wouldn't we start to lose focus or
concentrate about twice every minute? This argument prompted researchers to look at a
second phase of STM that is now referred to as Working Memory.
Working Memory is the process that takes place when we continually focus on material
for longer than STM alone will allow (Baddeley, 1992). What happens when our short
term memory is full and another bit of information enters? Displacement means that the
new information will push out part of the old information. Suddenly someone says the
area code for that phone number and almost instantly you forget the last two digits of the
number. We can further sharpen our short term memory skills, however, by mastering
chunking and using rehearsal (which allows us to visualize, hear, say, or even see the
information repeatedly and through different senses).
Finally, there is long term memory (LTM), which is most similar to the permanent
storage of a computer. Unlike the other two types, LTM is relatively permanent and
practically unlimited in terms of its storage capacity. It’s been argued that we have
enough space in our LTM to memorize every phone number in the world and still
function normally in terms of remembering what we do now. Obviously we don’t use
even a fraction of this storage space.
There are several subcategories of LTM.
First, memories for facts, life events, and information about our environment are stored in
Explicit memory/declarative memory. This includes semantic memory, factual
knowledge like the meaning of words, concepts, and our ability to do math (Lesch &
Pollatsek, 1993, Rohrer et al., 1995) and episodic memory, memories for events and
situations (Goldringer, 1996; Kliegel & Lindberger, 1993). The second subcategory is
often not thought of as memory because it refers to internal, rather than external
information. When you brush your teeth, write your name, or scratch your eye, you do
this with ease because you previously stored these movements and can recall them with
ease. This is referred to as non-declarative (or implicit) memory. These are memories we
have stored due to extensive practice, conditioning, or habits.
Why We Remember What We Remember
Short Term Memory.
There are typically six reasons why information is stored in our short term memory.
1. Primacy effect - information that occurs first is typically remembered better than
information occurring later. When given a list of words or numbers, the first word or
number is usually remembered due to rehearsing this more than other information.
2. Recency effect - often the last bit of information is remembered better because not as
much time has past; time which results in forgetting.
3. Distinctiveness - if something stands out from information around it, it is often
remembered better. Any distinctive information is easier to remember than that which is
similar, usual, or mundane.
4. Frequency effect - rehearsal, as stated in the first example, results in better memory.
Remember trying to memorize a formula for your math class. The more you went over it,
the better you knew it.
5. Associations - when we associate or attach information to other information it
becomes easier to remember. Many of us use this strategy in our professions and
everyday life in the form of acronyms.
6. Reconstruction - sometimes we actually fill in the blanks in our memory. In other
words, when trying to get a complete picture in our minds, we will make up the missing
parts, often without any realization that this is occurring.

Long Term Memory.

Information that passes from our short term to our long term memory is typically that
which has some significance attached to it. Imagine how difficult it would be to forget the
day you graduated, or your first kiss. Now think about how easy it is to forget
information that has no significance; the color of the car you parked next to at the store or
what shirt you wore last Thursday. When we process information, we attach significance
to it and information deemed important is transferred to our long term memory. There are
other reasons information is transferred. As we all know, sometimes our brains seem full
of insignificant facts. Repetition plays a role in this, as we tend to remember things more
the more they are rehearsed. Other times, information is transferred because it is
somehow attached to something significant. You may remember that it was a warm day
when you bought your first car. The temperature really plays no important role, but is
attached to the memory of buying your first car.
The Short term Memory/working memory.
The most important process at this level is rehearsal. Rehearsal takes two forms
depending on the reasons why we want to retain the information in memory.

a. Maintenance rehearsal: Sometimes we want to keep information in memory

briefly and then discard it. For example we meet old friend in town and he gives
us his cell phone number is entered in the relevant place we stop rehearsing it.
Another example to illustrate this type of rehearsal is a shopping list. We may
want to go to the market to buy some items e.g. ripe bananas, cabbages, potatoes,
tomatoes, beans, green maize and carrots. Before we make our shopping list we
rehearse these items until we write all of them on paper. Again once they are on
paper we stop rehearsing them. These two examples illustrate maintenance
rehearsal. This is rehearsal of information, which is not intended to move to the
longterm memory bank. It involves repetition of information over and over again.
When the information is no longer needed it forgotten.
b. Elaborative rehearsal: Elaborative rehearsal is used for all the information that
we wish to transfer to the long-term memory bank. This rehearsal involves
repetition of information and linking it with information already existing in the
long-term memory. These two processes ensure that the information is
catalogued and filed in the long-term memory.
c. The long-term memory bank: The following memories exist at this bank.
 Declarative memory. This is the memory for things that can be expressed in
words.
 Semantic memory. This is the memory for general facts.
 Episode memory. This is the memory for personal experiences.
 Procedural memory for actions and skills. At this memory bank, information is
organized in categories. Items that are similar are stored close together in a
method that is close labeled. For each item in memory there is an imaginary
index card which is appropriately catalogued. Forgetting occurs if there are
cataloging errors i.e. a card can be catalogued in the wrong place or a card can
get lost.
What causes cataloguing errors? Cataloguing errors can occur if a learner takes
in too much information within a short time. For example if you attend a function
and are introduced to about ten people within a short time you will find it
difficult to match the right names and faces due to cognitive bottlenecks. But if
you are introduced to one person every day for ten days you will not have a
problem remembering each one of them because you have processed all the
information properly. If two things are similar one may be remembered in the
place of other.
Improving Memory

What methods can learners can use in order to improve their memory?
a. Increasing Attention: As we have noted above attention refers to focusing on
information and registering it, isolating it from all possible distracters. This is an
important prerequisite for all memory with this in mind, it is important to think
how one can increase attention.
 Selecting a study environment, which does not contain too many distractions,
can increase attention. Distractions will refer to unnecessary noise, heat, cold
activities and things that appeal to sight or hearing.
 They refer to any environmental event, which interferes with taking in of
information. If learners are studying in a classroom or in a laboratory there
should be minimal distractions.
b. Rehearsal: Rehearsal refers to the repetition of what has been learned in the
school setting. It may refer to what is commonly referred to as study. As learners
conduct their study it is important to ensure that they engage in repetition of
correct responses with the awareness what the responses relate to. They should
not engage in repetition of meaningless material. For the study to be successful,
the teachers should ensure that:
 The schools organize study timetables.
 Give the learners the time and classrooms convenient for the purpose.
 They should train learners how to conduct individual study, for example,
how to pick out important facts, review them immediately and again later
 Learners should be trained how to engage in distributed practice or
massed practice depending on reasons for study.

c. Distributed practice: Involves taking short periods of study at a time and taking
a break after each period. This method is very beneficial when the learners want
to process information and store it in memory permanently. The short periods of
study could be taking two hours of study at a time and the breaking to do a totally
unrelated activity before resuming the study again. The unrelated activity could
be taking a shower, a walk, a snack or even a nap. This activity should be one
that helps one to relax as well as reward oneself.
d. Massed practice: Refers to sitting for long hours of Study.
The learner can be introduced to the model of study developed by Robinson (1970)
called SQ3R. This refers to the following:
 Survey the material through once.
 Raise questions about it
 Read it looking for answers
 Recite it and by doing so committing it to memory
 Review it
 By the time the learner is through with the last step the material is well committed to
memory.
e. The use of Mnemonic devices : Mnemonic Devices are techniques that have been
developed to improve memory particularly memory for bits of unrelated information.
One mnemonic devise is the peg word method. To use this method you must first learn
a series of words to go with numbers, for example, one is bun, two is shoe, three is tree
and four is door. The words and numbers rhyme. When you want to learn a list of
unrelated words you think of some image that combines the peg word and the word
you are trying to remember. Let us imagine that you wish to remember a grocery list, if
the first item on the list is soap you imagine a bun covered with soap bubbles. If the
second item is apples you picture a shoe stuffed with apples. If the third item is eggs,
you imagine a tree with eggs for fruits. If the fourth item is cabbage you imagine a door
with a large cabbage as lock knob.
f. The Loci method: Another technique is the Loci method, Pronounced Losi. This was a
method used by ancient Romans as old as 86 and 82 BC. First you think of a location.
Then for each item you want to remember you think of a representative image
something that symbolizes that item to you then you imagine each image in place in
the location e.g. Bedroom Floor……………………………………………...soap bubbles Your
bed…………………………………………………… two large apples Your dressing
table………………………………………… filled with eggs Your coffee
table……………………………………………two huge carrots The clothes
Wardrobe………………………………………cabbage hanging there These techniques use
imagery, which is a representation in thought of visual scenes forming a vivid, unusual
image of each object, which is unforgettable.