Test 2 (Chapter 9)

What are 2 things required for learning to occur?

Memory and attention

What are different types of knowledges according to the cognitive perspective

Domain-specific: Information used in situation or applied to one topic

General knowledge: Information used for many tasks and situations

Declarative knowledge: Information expressed in words or symbols, facts, knowing something

Procedural knowledge: knowledge shown by performing a task

Self-regulatory knowledge: knowledge about how to manage learning, knowing when to use declarative or procedural knowledge

Name and describe the three systems information is divided into

1. Sensory memory 

   • Very brief, unconscious (e.g. temperature, feel of clothing) 

2. Working memory 

   • Conscious processing area 

   • Includes: 

     • Central executive 

     • Episodic buffer 

     • Phonological loop 

     • Visuospatial sketchpad 

   • Short-term memory is part of WM 

    

3. Long-term memory 

   • Unlimited capacity 

   • Not separate from working memory 

Explain Perception as a cognitive view of memory

Perception: process of detecting stimulus and assigning meaning to it 

• Making meaning of physical representation of the world 

• Bottom-up processing: assembling features into a pattern 

  • Example: Seeing lines, curves, and angles and recognizing them as letters, then words. 

• Top down processing: making sense of information by using context and what you already know 

  • Example: Using the title of a chapter to anticipate its content, or filling in missing letters in a word based on its context. 

   

• Both bottom-up and top-down processes occur simultaneously and interact to help us perceive and understand 

Explain Attention as a cognitive view of memory

Attention: The process of focusing on specific stimuli while ignoring others 

• The reticular activating system (RAS) in the brain plays a role in filtering stimuli 

 

• Automaticity: doing something with minimal effort and awareness 

Explain Cognitive load as a cognitive view of memory

Cognitive load: volume of cognitive resources to complete task 

• When there is a strong cognitive load you can't multitask 

• Intrinsic cognitive load: the task itself 

  • Example: The inherent difficulty of understanding quantum physics. 

• Extraneous cognitive load: irrelevant to the task 

  • Example: Distractions in the environment, confusing instructions, or disorganized presentation of material. 

Explain Forgetting as a cognitive view of memory

• Forgetting 

  • Interference: prior knowledge disrupts learning or performing a task 

    • Proactive Interference: Old learning interferes with new learning. 

    • Retroactive Interference: New learning interferes with old learning. 

   

  • Decay: weakening and fading of memories overtime 

 

Explain Explicit Memory (Declarative memory)

Explicit memory (declarative memory): Knowledge that is subject to deliberate or conscious recall. 

• Semantic (declarative knowledge) memory: meaning, not tied to experiences, important in schooling 

  • Can include: 

    • Propositional network: set of interconnected concepts in which long term knowledge is organized 

    • Images: representations based on the structure or appearance of the information 

    • Schemas: mental framework guides perception and helps make sense of experience based on what you know and expect 

     

• Episodic memory: memory tied to place or time of life 

  • Flashbulb memories: vivid, dramatic strong memories 

  • Source monitoring: deciding if a memory is real and accurate by remembering the context 

Explain Implicit Memory

Implicit memory: knowledge you are not conscious of recalling but that influences your behavior or thoughts 

• Can include: 

  • Procedural memory: memory for skills, habits and how to perform tasks 

  • Scripts: are actions sequences or plants for actions stored in memory 

  • Productions: specify what to do under certain conditions (if a occurs, do b) 

Explain the development differences in Working memory

There are developmental differences in working memory 

• Working memory capacity and efficiency improve over time as children grow. 

Explain the individual differences in Working memory

There are individual differences in working memory 

• Important in learning and development at every age 

• WM capacity influences how much they learn 

• WM can vary during the day or in the week 

 

What are 3 factors affecting individual differences in long-term memory

• Knowledge: students with good WM are better at pulling the right information 

• Use of strategies: Effective use of learning strategies enhances LTM etrieval. 

• Ability to control attention: The capacity to focus and sustain attention is crucial for moving information from working memory to long-term memory. 

Describe teaching strategies for long lasting knowledge

• Development of declarative knowledge: Emphasize making meaningful connections. To remember something, students have to connect new information with what they already know 

  • Strategies include:  

    • Elaborating: Adding meaning to new information by connecting it to existing knowledge. 

    • Using Mnemonics: Memory aids that connect new information to easily retrievable cues. 

   

   

• Development of procedural knowledge 

  • These are applied overtime without conscious thought 

  • But they do require deliberate practice 

    • Deliberate practice: monitoring how well you are doing, compare performance to high standard, seeking and using feedback, focusing on areas of improvement 

Define Metacognition

Knowledge about your own thinking processes and how to control them, along with skills to regulate your thinking (It literally means "thinking about thinking." It sets the stage for choosing the best way to approach a learning task.) 

 

Name 3 types of knowledge involved in metacognition

• Declarative knowledge: Knowing what to do (about yourself as a learner, factors influencing learning, strategies needed). 

• Procedural knowledge: Knowing how to use the strategies. 

• Self-regulatory knowledge: Knowing when and why to apply the procedures and strategies 

What are 3 essential skills for metacognition development

1. Planning: Deciding how much time to give to a task, which strategies to use, how to star 

2. Monitoring: Real-time awareness of how you're doing (e.g., "Is this making sense?", "Am I trying to work too fast?) 

3. Evaluating: Making judgments about the processes and outcomes of thinking and learning (e.g., "Should I change strategies?", "Get help?") 

Name the individual differences for metacognition

• Developmental: Metacognitive abilities begin to develop around ages 5 to 7 and improve throughout school. 

• Biology 

• Learning experiences 

• Learning disabilities: People with disability may struggle with monitoring attention  

How is metacognition developed in younger students (Gr. 1-2)

• Teachers can help students develop habits of looking at their own thinking 

• Teachers can ask reflection questions (e.g., “What did you learn about yourself?”) 

What is the KWL approach?

• Strategy to guide reading and inquiry 

• K - What do I KNOW already (about this subject)? 

• W - What do I WANT to know? 

• L - What have I LEARNED (at the end of the reading or inquiry)? 

How is metacognition developed in university students

• Teachers can incorporate metacognitive questions into lessons, lectures, and assignments to encourage self-reflection 

• "What are my intellectual strengths and weaknesses?" 

• "How can I motivate myself to learn when I need to?" 

• "How good am I at judging how well I understand something? 

Name the type of Learning strategies

• Cognitive: summarizing, identifying the main idea 

• Metacognitive: monitoring comprehension, "Do I understand? 

• Behavioral: using an internet dictionary, setting a timer 

What are important guidelines for effective learning strategies?

• Students must be cognitively engaged: They have to focus attention on the relevant or important aspects of the material 

• Students have to invest effort (active learning): Making connections, elaborating, translating, inventing (The greater the practice and processing, the stronger the learning.) 

• Process info thoroughly 

• Monitor understanding (metacognition): Keep track of what is making sense and notice when a new approach is needed. 

What are examples of learning strategies?

• Planning and focusing attention 

• Organizing and remembering 

• Comprehension 

• Cognitive monitoring 

• Practice 

What are important things to keep in mind when fostering learning strategies 

• Student must care about learning and understanding 

• No learning strategies will help a student learn if understanding the material is out of their ability 

• Student must believe they are capable (self-efficacy) of using the strategies. 

• Student should believe that effort put into learning is worth it 

• When someone fails to activate a learning strategy, that is called Production deficiency 

Strategies for effective note taking?

• Effective practices: Take organized notes, capture key ideas, concepts, and relationships (not just details), 

• Benefits of note taking: Focuses attention, aids in constructing meaning (elaboration), provides external storage for review. 

Name different reading strategies

• READS strategy: Review headings, Examine boldface words, Ask what do I expect to learn, Do it (Read!), Summarize in your own words. 

• CAPS strategy: Characters, Aim of the story, Problem happens, How is the problem solved? 

What does a problem consist of?

• Initial state: The current situation 

• Goal: the desired outcome 

• Path: The activities that move you toward the goal  

  • Problem solvers often have to set and reach subgoals to reach the final solution. 

Explain well-structured and ill-structured problems

• Well-structured : Have clear-cut goals and a structured, often identifiable process to solve them. Solutions are typically straightforward and definable 

  • Ex. A math problem in a textbook 

   

• Ill-structured: Have many different possible solutions and paths to solve them 

  • Ex. Choosing a career 

What is the debate for problem solving?

• Some psychologists believe effective strategies are domain-specific problem-solving strategies (unique to a subject area, e.g., math strategies are unique to math). 

• Others argue for general problem-solving strategies useful in many areas (e.g., identifying the problem, setting goals, exploring solutions, acting, evaluating). 

What are steps for problem solving?

1. Defining goals and representing the problem 

2. Search for possible solutions 

3. Anticipating, acting and looking back 

Explain the “defining goals and representing the problem” step of problem solving

1. Focus attention on what is relevant and avoid distraction 

2. Understand words of the problem 

3. Activate a useful schema 

4. Translation and schema training 

   • Different ways to do that: 

     • Demonstration, modeling, visual representations and diagrams, think alouds, worked examples 

    

Explain the “Searching for possible solution strategies” step of problem solving

Procedural knowledge 

• 2 types of procedures for solution finding 

  • Algorithmic: step-by-step procedure for solving a problem, subject specific and tied to specific topic 

  • Heuristic: using a general strategy to attempt to solve problems 

    • Analogical thinking: looking for solutions or situations similar to ones at hand 

    • Verbalization: Putting a problem-solving plan into words 

Explain the “Anticipating, acting and looking back ” step of problem solving

• Identify a solution and anticipate consequences 

• Evaluate the results by checking for evidence that confirms or goes against your solution 

   

Explain factors hindering problem solving

• Functional fixedness: The inability to use objects or tools in a new, non-traditional way beyond their conventional purpose (e.g., searching for a screwdriver when a dime would work). 

 

• Response set: responding in the most familiar way 

 

• Availability heuristic: Judging the likelihood based of an event based on what is available in your memory 

• Belief perseverance: the tendency to hold on to beliefs, even in the face of contradictory evidence 

 

• Confirmation bias: seeking information that confirms your choices and beliefs while ignoring disconfirming evidence 

What is Argumentation?

The process of constructing and critiquing claims and the evidence offered to support them; the process of debating a claim with someone else

What are 2 styles of argumentation?

• Disputative: Debate where you must support your claims with evidence and understand your opponent's position so you can successfully refute their claims with evidence  

• Deliberative: goal is to collaborate in comparing, contrasting, and evaluating alternatives, then arrive at a constructive conclusion (which idea is right) 

  • Usually in written form 

What can be developed with practice and logical reasoning?

• Humility 

• Perseverance 

• Confidence 

• These reflect good critical thinking