What It All Means To Me

Our long-term memory contains our semantic memory that contains our schemas and scripts. It is during the encoding process that we determine what we pay attention to, and at what level we will process that information. The levels of processing range from shallow to deep. I, the teacher, will determine through the type of questioning, or the activity I choose as to what level of processing they will use. For example, if I ask them to look at a word or listen to a lecture, they will process at a shallow level and have little recall. Whereas if I ask them questions about the words meaning, use it in a sentence, give me a summary of the lecture, or relate this information to the previous section they will use deep levels of processing and increase their recall. The self-reference effect reinforces why I have students make personal connections. Using the self as a reference encourages deep levels of processing and hence greater recall. This is because the self is viewed as a rich set of cues. Additionally, I have learned why students want to take make-up tests in the class as opposed the library or the hallway, even though I think it would be distracting, this is due the encoding specificity principle. This is simply that the encoding context should be similar to the retrieval context. I now understand why students have difficulty on tests. This is because I do not help them encode the information in the format that I intend to test them, I have changed this for the upcoming year. Traditionally, I would give students a list of words to learn the meaning of and how to spell. I would then test them by giving them the definition and they would have to come up with the word, now I will use recall teaching for recall tests (essays, short answer) and I will use recognition teaching for recognition tests ( multiple choice. In addition, I will now have the students learn material using the principles of encoding specificity and the self-reference effect principles and I will help them to develop appropriate learning strategies.
The long-term memory contains our semantic memory and this is our general knowledge. In order for semantic memory to grow, I have to engage my students’ (and my own) existing schemas. I can do this by using graphic organizers, activating prior knowledge through questioning, guest speakers, movies, and etcetera. As a teacher, I need to teach children how to access their current schema and how to increase their knowledge with effective study strategies.
A group of scripts I teach my students is the classroom scripts. That is how to enter the room, where to put their things, what to do with homework, move their clip for lunch choice, how to get help, how to line up, what to expect each day, and so forth. Most of the students come with a predetermined script based on previous experiences; it is my job to ensure they match mine.
In conclusion, the immense amount of information and the application of, both personally and professionally, that I have learned in this class is immense. I had not thought of why I do many of the things I do, but now I have a clearer understanding of the cognitive psychology theory behind many of my decisions. Now when I am asked why I do something, I can turn to my book, or several of the many articles I have, and show it has been proven effective through research. In a time when teachers are continuously under fire and being bombarded with ineffective teaching methods it is crucial that I can back my teaching techniques up with research.

The Parallel Distributed Processing Approach

Parallel Distributed Processing Approach states that cognitive processing is based on parallel operations in which all attributes are considered at the same time. Each concept is represented as a node and is connected to other nodes. Each time a network connection is made between nodes it strengthens and learning takes places.
Let us look at an example
Using the following clues, guess what is being described
A. It has doors
B. It has windows
C. It has rooms
D. It is on wheels
You were probably thinking about a house; until you came to the sentence, it has wheels. Now you are thinking about either a mobile home or a travel trailer.
Let us look at another example
A. It is green
B. It grows on a vine
C. It is a vegetable
D. It can be string, green, or wax
You should have guessed bean. However, you might have thought about a cucumber until you came to the fourth clue.
Advantages of the Parallel Distributed Processing Approach
1. Explains how our memory helps us when some of the information is missing
2. We make spontaneous generalizations through inferences about general information. Spontaneous generalizations account for some of memory errors and can partially explain stereotyping.
3. Processing is a distributed activity across several locations
4. A network contains nodes which are connected to many other links
5. Connections are weighted. Connection weights determine how much activation a unit can passes to another unit and each can be open at different levels
6. Activation can be either positive or negative
7. Each avtivation changes the stength of connections among related units
8. Graceful degradation is the brain's ability to provide partial memory and explains tip of the tongue phenomenon
Reference
Matlin, M.W. (2005), Cognition (6th ed.) Wiley and Sons
Additonal information obtained from this site

The Exemplar Approach

According to Wisniewski for each concept, we first learn a few specific examples called an exemplar. We then classify each new stimulus based on how closely it resembles the specific examples.
• For example for the concept pet, I think of dog, cat, and bird. Each of these items are my exemplars for the my concept of pet.


Reference
Matlin, M.W. (2005), Cognition (6th ed.) Wiley and Sons

The Prototype Approach

Eleanor Rosch proposed The Prototype Approach which states that we organize our categories based on a prototype, which is an idealized item that is the typical representative of the category. An example of this would be a green bean is my prototype for the category vegetable.
Inclusion into a category is based on the comparison of the item to the prototype.
1. Example: the prototype I have for a table is it is made of wood, it has four legs, the top is smooth and flat, and its shape is a square. Therefore I would include all square, flat topped, four legged, and wooden pieces of furniture into my category of table.
Levels of categorization
• Superordinate-level categories are our more general categories. For example: appliance, lumber, vehicle.
• Basic-level categories are a little more specific. They identify objects. For example: stove, plywood, and car. Rosch and colleagues asked people to look at pictures and identify the objects. They found that people used the basic level category to identify the objects. In other words, they identified objects by their common name. They also found that the basic level name is given faster than the subordinate level name.
Basic-level names induce the priming effect. This means that you will respond faster to an item if a similar item preceded it.
• Subordinate-level categories are more specific. For example: wood stove, outdoor treated plywood, sports car.
2. Let me show you a few another example.
• Superordinate-level category-meat
• Basic-level category-beef
• Subordinate-level category-ground beef(hamburger)
3. Now you try using these Superordinate-level categories:
• Clothing
• Furniture
• Home
Reference:
Matlin, M.W. (2005),Cognition (6th ed.) Wiley and Sons