Memory

 

Memory:

           Memory is the function of mind by virtue of which it records, retains and produces ideas gained by its own activity.

  J.A. ADAMS – Memory is the learning capacity for responding and its persistence over time is measured by retention test.

 RYBURN – “The power that we have to store our experiences and to bring them into the field of consciousness sometime after the experiences have occurred” is the memory.

WOODWORTH & MARQUIS – “Memory is a mental power which consists in learning, retaining and remembering what has previously been learnt”.

 

(Need to write any one definition at least)

 

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SHORT-TERM MEMORY AND LONG-TERM MEMORY

SHORT TERM MEMORY	LONG TERKM MEMORY:
1. If the information is recalled from brain from short term storage is short term memory.	1. If the information is recalled from long term storage of brain, it is called long-term memory.
2. This is temporary memory.	2. This is permanent memory.
3.Eg: Theatre seat number, bus number.	3. E.g.: Date of birth, parents name etc.
4. Recalling takes more time.	4. Recalling takes less time.

Helping students to remember better:

1.       Teach students by using visual images and other memory strategies.

2.       Asking questions.

3.       Transforming learning into an Exciting experience.

4.       Using Real life examples.

5.       Creating Mind map.

6.       Embracing the Multisensory experience.

7.       Listing the key words.

8.       Fragmenting information.

9.       Inculcating presentation skills.

10.   Combining learning with Rhymes and songs.

TEACHING STYLE

 

TEACHING STYLE

Teaching styles, also called teaching methods, are considered to be the general principles, educational, and management strategies for classroom instruction.

               Two philosophers, John Locke (Some Thoughts Concerning Education) and Jean-Jacques Rousseau (On Education), developed different theories as to how to educate which lead us to have the idea of different teaching styles today. Locke saw the importance of developing a child’s physical habits first anything else. To Locke, this was essential to a child’s development. Rousseau believed that education should be more centered on a child’s interactions with the world and the teaching style should concentrate less on books.

Need of different teaching styles

        Why can’t everyone be taught the same way? Well, why can’t you learn something the same way as your partner or next-door neighbor? Everybody learns different ideas at different times at different paces. Some people can learn something on the first try after being told what to do whereas others might need to have hands-on experience in order to learn and possibly repeat it a few times to really get the hang of things.

           Different teaching styles are necessary because the students need to be able to learn what the teacher is teaching. However, the choice of teaching styles used can also depend on the school mission statement, the classroom demographics, the educational philosophy of the teacher, and most importantly, the subject area.

 

Types of teaching styles

There are five main types of teaching styles and methods to choose from.

1. The Authority method: It is also known as the lecture style, involves sitting and listening to the instructor speak about a pre-assigned topic while the students take notes and memorize to the best of their ability what is being said. This particular style is more popular in universities and some high schools due to a larger student population. However, less common in the standard classroom setting due to its lack of allowance of student participation and inability to meet individual needs.
2. The Demonstrator method: It is widely known as the coaching style, similar to the lecture style, The Demonstrator method tries to maintain authority in the classroom. Even so, instead of using only a verbal lecture to give information and teach, this style coaches students using gateways like multimedia presentations, class activities and demonstrations. For subjects like music, art, and physical education subjects, this style is perfect because the demonstration is usually necessary to acquire a full understanding of the subject. However, a downside is that there is little individual interaction between the teacher and students which makes it difficult to accommodate to personalized needs.

3.      The Facilitator style: It is recognized also as the activity or action method, tries to encourage self-learning through peer-to-teacher learning. In contrast to the lecture style, teachers ask students to question rather than give them the answer. The goal is for students to develop a deeper understanding of the topic by using self-discovery and develop problem-solving skills. This technique is best used in small classroom settings because, as a facilitator, the teacher needs to interact with students on an individual basis, which can be difficult with a larger number of students.

4. The Delegator style, or group method: It is used for school subjects that require group work, lab-based learning, or peer feedback. For example, science classes and certain language learning classes. The teacher acts as a delegator, becoming an observer to promote peer collaboration and encourage student-to-student learning. The Delegator style is becoming more and more popular throughout many classrooms. However, some people consider other styles to be more proactive due to the fact that the group method removes the teacher from a position of authority.  
5. Hybrid method:  Last, but not least, the Hybrid method, also known as blended learning, is an integrated teaching style that incorporates personal preferences, individual personalities, and specific interests into their teaching. It’s popular in English, science, and religion classes because it’s easy to incorporate extra-curricular knowledge into a developed, deeper knowledge of a particular topic. Some argue that this style weakens the learning process because the teacher tries to be all things to all students.

Effects of teaching style on learning

ü If teacher adopts student centered approach, students can actively participate in the learning

        process and learning become strong and effective

ü Teacher should select the teaching style according to the needs and learning styles of different

        students. Otherwise proper learning may not happen.

ü The teaching style has an important role in determining a student’s love towards the particular

       subject which intern influences his learning of that subject.

ü Careful selection of teaching style is very important in the successful teaching learning process

      as the students are having diverse abilities, diverse backgrounds, grasping powers and learning

       styles

ü Instructional objectives will not be attained if the teaching style selected is not proper

ü Wrong teaching style leads to boredom and lack of interest

FACTORS EFFECTING ON TEACHING STYLE

o Teacher’s personality, experience, health, knowledge etc.

o Instructional objectives

o Availability of teaching and learning aids

o Teacher’s ability and preference

o Cultural aspect of the society

o The age of leaners

o Psychological needs of student

o Educational philosophy of a country

o Examination set up

o The size of the class

o Time bound

o Nature of content

o Student learning style

 

ROLE OF HEMISPHERES IN THINKING, LEARNING AND TEACHING STYLE

 ROLE OF HEMISPHERES IN THINKING, LEARNING AND TEACHING STYLE

        The brain is made up of two halves, or hemispheres – the left brain and the right brain. The brain is divided into two distinct and separate parts by a fold that runs from the front to the back. These parts are connected to each other by a thick cable of nerves at the base of each brain, called the corpus collosum. A good analogy is that of two separate, incredibly fast and immensely powerful computers, each running different programs from the same input, connected by a network cable, or the corpus collosum. The left hemisphere of our brain is “wired” to the right side of our body and vice versa. This even applies to our eyes, with information from our right eye going to the left hemisphere and information from our left eye feeding the right hemisphere.

Ø  Both sides of the brain can reason, but may use different strategies and one side may be dominant. This means when the brain is stressed, or asked to perform a function it may go on auto-pilot and reach to the dominant side to solve a problem, learn a skill, or perform a task.

Ø  It is not so much that we are biologically right brain or left brain dominant, but that we are more comfortable with the learning strategies characteristic of one over the other.

Ø   The left side is considered "the brain" of the brain, and controls final decisions concerning information gathered throughout the brain. It inhibits the right side's cognitive and decision-making processes. But because the hemisphere of our preferences probably has more neural connections, learning may occur faster in the dominant side.

 

Left Brain Functions2	Right Brain Functions
Uses logic	Uses feeling
Detail oriented	“Big pictures” oriented
Facts rule	Imaginations rules
Words and language	Symbols and images
Present and past	Present and future
Math and science	Philosophy and religion
Order/pattern perception	Spatial perception
Knows object name	Knows object function
Reality based	Fantasy based
Forms strategies	Presents possibilities
Practical	Impetuous
Safe	Risk taking

Most scientists and researchers seem to agree that there are definite differences in the way each hemisphere of the brain works. Essentially, the right brain is holistic, convergent, and able to ascertain the big picture. The right brain deals with emotions, feelings, creativity, and intuition. The left brain is linear, divergent, and focuses on one thing at a time. The left brain deals with more logical subject areas, such as mathematics and speech. Much of this knowledge is based upon the Nobel Prize winning research of Roger Sperry (Medicine, 1981). In the early 1960s Sperry conducted “split-brain” experiments on an epileptic individual who had undergone surgery to split the corpus collosum, thereby severing the connection between the two hemispheres of the brain. “The surgery revealed what Sperry described as ‘two spheres of consciousness’ locked in the one head, the left-hand side having speech and a rational, intellectual style, while the right was inarticulate, but blessed with special spatial abilities.” As a result of Sperry’s findings and subsequent studies, researchers believed they understood the various functions the right brain and the left brain controlled.

Linear and Holistic: Linear means part-to-whole. The left-brained person takes little pieces, lines them up, arranges them in logical order, and arrives at a convergent conclusion. The right-brained person thinks whole-to-part, holistically. The child with a dominant right hemisphere starts with the answer, a total concept, or perceives the whole pattern and discovers a divergent conclusion.

Symbolic and Concrete: Left-hemispheric children think in symbols; they deal with symbols, they can function with symbols. Right-hemispheric children deal with the concrete; they learn by doing, touching, moving, being in the middle of things

Sequential and Random: The left-brain approaches life sequentially, while the right brain floats randomly through life’s experiences.

Logical and Intuitive: (The) Logical (person) knows exactly where he gets his answers. He starts out with a little piece of information and logically works toward an end result. Right-brained children are intuitive; they are not logical. They pull the answers right out of the air. They can give you the answer to a long-division problem but they may not be able to work through the sequential steps.

Reality-based and Fantasy-oriented: Left-hemispheric children can deal with reality, with the way thing are. Left-hemispheric children are very much affected by the environment and will adjust to it. If something is presented to them, they will shift and react. If something is not there for left-hemispheric children, it doesn’t exist for them.

      Right-hemispheric children will try to change the environment, to make it shift and react to meet their needs in any way they know how. They deal with fantasy, with imagery, with imagination.

Temporal and Non-temporal: Left-hemispheric children have a sense of time. Right-hemispheric children have very little sense of time. They simply do not comprehend when you set time limits. They cannot think in any terms except the here and now.

ü Left brain students are good at linear and sequential processing, such as involved in language and mathematics.

ü Left brain students are also good at planning and following directions

ü Right brain students process information more holistically. They learn by understanding the big picture, not the details

ü Right brain students tend to be visual, not language oriented

ü Right brain students face difficulty following a lecture style class. they must take extensive notes, and use diagrams and drawings to make information more visual, to facilitate learning the information.

ü Left brain students are good note takers and list makers. They are good at planning and scheduling. That means they are good at completing assignments.

ü Right brain students tend to approach things randomly. They tend to not make study schedules, and jump around from one task to another without regard to priorities

ü Right brain students may be late with an assignment, not because they weren’t working hard, but because they were working on a lower priority assignment.

ü Right brain students’ needs extra effort in reading instructions to ensure they understand the assignment

ü Left brain students are better at writing and spelling, since it involves sequencing and organizing of letters and words

ü Right brain students require more time to write a paper and require more revisions to get it to say what they want to say

ü Right brain students must also rely more on spelling checkers and proof reading for their assignments

ü Right brain students tend to be more creative, but have more trouble than left brain students with the mechanics of writing and communicating.

LEFT BRAIN TEACHING TECHNIQUES

       Let’s say, for example, that you are introducing a unit on the solar system. Here are some left-brain teaching techniques that will help strong to moderate left-brain students feel engaged during your lesson:

1. Write an outline of the lesson on the board. Students with left-brain strengths appreciate sequence.
2. Go ahead and lecture! These students love to listen to an expert and take notes.
3.  Discuss vocabulary words and create a crossword puzzle on the Solar System.
4. Discuss the big concepts involved in the creation of the universe, how the solar system was formed, and so on. Left-brain students love to think about and discuss abstract concepts.
5. Assign individual assignments so students may work alone.
6. Ask the students to write a research paper on the solar system that includes both detail and conceptual analysis.
7.  Keep the room relatively quiet and orderly. Many students with left-brain strengths prefer not to hear other conversations when working on a stimulating project.

RIGHT BRAIN TEACHING TECHNIQUES

        Taking the solar system example, here are some right-brain teaching techniques that will help students with moderate to strong right-brain strengths get the most out of your lesson:

1. During the lecture, either write the main points on the board or pass out a study guide outline that students can fill in as you present orally. These visual clues will help students focus even though you are lecturing.
2.  Use the overhead, the white board, or the chalkboard frequently. Since the students are apt to miss the points discussed verbally, the visual pointers will help the students “see” and comprehend the points.
3.  Have some time for group activities during the week of the solar system study. Right-brain students enjoy the company of others.
4.  Let the students create a project (such as a poster, a mobile, a diorama, or paper machine planets of the solar system) in lieu of writing a paper. Right-brained students often have excellent eye-hand coordination.
5.  Play music, such as the theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey. Discuss how space might feel to an astronaut. Students with right-brain strengths are intuitive and like to get in touch with their feelings during the day.
6.  Bring in charts and maps of the universe and let the students find the Milky Way. Maps and graphs make use of the students’ strong right-brain visual-spatial skills. 

LEARNING AND TEACHING STYLE

 LEARNING AND TEACHING STYLE

LEARNING STYLE:

             Learning styles refer to a range of competing and contested theories that aim to account for differences in individuals' learning. These theories propose that all people can be classified according to their 'style' of learning, although the various theories present differing views on how the styles should be defined and categorized. A common concept is that individuals differ in how they learn. Proponents recommend that teachers assess the learning styles of their students and adapt their classroom methods to best fit each student's learning style.

          Technically, an individual’s learning style refers to the preferential way in which the student absorbs, processes, comprehends and retains information. For example, when learning how to build a clock, some students understand the process by following verbal instructions, while others have to physically manipulate the clock themselves. This notion of individualized learning styles has gained widespread recognition in education theory and classroom management strategy. Individual learning styles depend on cognitive, emotional and environmental factors, as well as one’s prior experience. In other words: everyone’s different. It is important for educators to understand the differences in their students’ learning styles, so that they can implement best practice strategies into their daily activities, curriculum and assessments.

Types of learning styles

1.       Visual (spatial): prefer using pictures, images, and spatial understanding.

2.       Aural (auditory-musical): prefer using sound and music.

3.       Verbal (linguistic): prefer using words, both in speech and writing.

4.        Physical (kinesthetic): prefer using your body, hands and sense of touch.

5.       Logical (mathematical): prefer using logic, reasoning and systems.

6.       Social (interpersonal): prefer to learn in groups or with other people.

7.        Solitary (intrapersonal): prefer to work alone and use self-study.

Why learning styles?

       Your learning styles have more influence than you may realize. Your preferred styles guide the way you learn. They also change the way you internally represent experiences, the way you recall information, and even the words you choose.

VARK Model

     One of the most accepted understandings of learning styles is that student learning styles fall into three “categories:” Visual Learners, Auditory Learners and Kinesthetic Learners. These learning styles are found within educational theorist Neil Fleming ’s VARK model of Student Learning. VARK is an acronym that refers to the four types of learning styles: Visual, Auditory, Reading/Writing Preference, and Kinesthetic.

        The VARK model acknowledges that students have different approaches to how they process information, referred to as “preferred learning modes.” The main ideas of VARK are outlined in Learning Styles Again: VARKing up the right tree! (Fleming & Baume, 2006)

·         Students’ preferred learning modes have significant influence on their behavior and learning.

·         Students’ preferred learning modes should be matched with appropriate learning strategies.

·         Information that is accessed through students’ use of their modality preferences shows an increase in their levels of comprehension, motivation, and metacognition.

         Identifying your students as visual, auditory, reading/writing or kinesthetic learners, and aligning your overall curriculum with these learning styles, will prove to be beneficial for your entire classroom. Allowing students to access information in terms they are comfortable with will increase their academic confidence.

SWOT Strategies

         Referred to as SWOT (“Study Without Tears”), Flemings provides advice on how students can use their learning modalities and skills to their advantage when studying for an upcoming test or assignment.

Visual SWOT Strategies

Ø  Utilize graphic organizers such as charts, graphs, and diagrams.

Ø   Redraw your pages from memory.

Ø   Replace important words with symbols or initials.

Ø  Highlight important key terms in corresponding colors.

Aural SWOT Strategies

Ø  Record your summarized notes and listen to them on tape.

Ø  Talk it out. Have a discussion with others to expand upon your understanding of a topic.

Ø  Reread your notes and/or assignment out loud.

Ø   Explain your notes to your peers/fellow “aural” learners.

Read/Write SWOT Strategies

Ø  Write, write and rewrite your words and notes.

Ø  Reword main ideas and principles to gain a deeper understanding.

Ø  Organize diagrams, charts, and graphic organizers into statements.

Kinesthetic SWOT Strategies

Ø  Use real life examples, applications and case studies in your summary to help with abstract concepts.

Ø  Redo lab experiments or projects.

Ø  Utilize pictures and photographs that illustrate your idea.

 

Strategies for the Kinesthetic Learner (learns best by doing — “hands on”)

Ø  Pace or walk around while referencing your notes and reciting to yourself.

Ø  If you need to fidget, try doing so in a way which will not disturb others. Use the Tangle Jr., Wikki Sticks, or a stress ball.

Ø  You might not study best while at a desk. Try lying on your stomach or back on a comfortable lounge chair.

Ø   Studying with music in the background might suit you (instrumental music is best – as opposed to heavily rhythm-based music).

Ø   While studying, take frequent breaks. A reasonable schedule would be 20-30 minutes of study, and 5 minutes of break time.

Strategies for the Auditory Learner (learns best by hearing)

Ø  Study with a friend, parent, or group so you can discuss and hear the information.

Ø   Recite out loud the information you want to remember several times.

Ø   Make your own tapes of important points you want to remember and listen to it repeatedly. This is especially useful for learning material for tests.

Ø   When doing math calculations, use grid paper to help you set your sums out correctly and in their correct columns.

Ø   Use different colors and pictures in your notes, exercise books, etc. This will help you remember them.

Strategies for the Visual Learner (learns best by seeing)

Ø  Try to work in a quiet place. Some visual learners like soft music in the background.

Ø   Most visual learners learn best alone.

Ø   When studying, take many notes and write down lots of details.

Ø   When trying to learn material by writing out notes, cover your notes then re-write. Rewriting will help you remember better.

Ø   Use color to highlight main ideas.

Ø  Before reading a chapter or a book, preview it first by scanning the pictures, headings, terms in bold and so on.

Ø  When creating flashcards, always add a picture cue to aide memory.

Importance of learning style

Ø  By understanding what kind of learner, you and/or your students are, you can now gain a better perspective on how to implement these learning styles into your lesson plans and study techniques.

Ø  Academic.

Ø  gives you a head start and maximizes your learning potential.

Ø  enables you to succeed in school, college, university.

Ø  gives you customized techniques to score better on tests and exams.

Ø  allows you to learn “your way” – through your own best strategies.

Ø  shows you how to overcome the limitations of poor instructors.

Ø  reduces the stress and frustration of learning experiences.

Ø  expands your existing learning and studying strategies.

 Personal

§ increases your self-confidence

§ improves your self-image

§ teaches you how to use your brain best

§ gives your insight into your strengths, weaknesses, and habits

§ enables you to enjoy any learning process

§ inspires greater curiosity and motivation for lifelong learning

§ shows you how to take advantage of your natural skills and inclinations

Professional

§ enables you to stay up-to-date professionally

§ gives you an edge over your competitors

§ allows you to manage teams more effectively

§ guides you in delivering effective presentations to diverse audiences

§ improves your persuasive and sales skills

§ helps you improve cooperation among colleagues

§ translates learning power into earning power

Factors effecting on learning style

Ø  Intellectual factors-brilliance or intellectual capacity of students effects their learning styles.

Ø   Mental factors

Ø   Emotional factors (explain each point in own words)

Ø   Social factors- family, society

Ø  Teachers approach and personality

Ø  Environmental factors-each type of leaner prefers different learning environment. Peaceful and calm environment-for solitary leaners, social leaners prefer to study in groups mostly in an open space

Ø   Economic factors-poverty, lack of proper facilities

Ø  Health conditions-physical wellbeing, any diseases.