Unit 8: Using and Improving Your Memory Skills
This short unit focuses exclusively on improving your memory skills. Memorization is an interesting problem for the college student because, unlike in high school, just knowing a list of facts is unlikely to be the end goal of your learning. You will need to memorize information in college in order to perform the higher-level thinking skills that were discussed in Unit 5 of this course.
Because memorization is a common study skill for high school subjects, you may already have specific strategies that you employ. Nonetheless, as with the other critical undergraduate skills of listening, note-taking, reading, and writing, you can improve your memorization skills by studying the advanced memorization techniques discussed in this unit.
Completing this unit should take you approximately 4 hours.
Upon successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- identify what aspects of your studies are the most important to remember;
- differentiate between short-term and long-term memory;
- describe simple exercises that can improve your memory retention; and
- explain different memorization strategies, including types of mnemonic devices.
8.1: Review Information to Remember It
8.1.1: How Memory Works (The Brain Science of Memory and Short-Term vs. Long-Term Memory)
8.1.2: Tips for Putting Information in Long-Term Memory
In Section 4.5, read the text underneath the headings entitled "The Role of Memorizing in Learning" and "How Memory Works." Attempt the "Just for Fun" and "Exercise Your Memory" activities.
8.1.3: Using Mnemonic Devices
In Section 4.5, read the section titled "Using Mnemonics." Then, attempt the Creative Memory Challenge, and make sure to complete the checkpoint exercises at the end of the section.
Focus on the section with the subheading titled "Acronyms" to review how you can use acronyms to help recall information. In thinking about acronyms, consider the many organizations that use acronyms to simplify a longer title, such as United States government organizations like NASA (The National Aeronautics and Space Administration) or world-wide organizations like the UN (The United Nations). Jot down a list of common acronyms in your academic journal.
Focus on the paragraph starting with "Acrostics" to review how you can use this device to help recall information. Pay particular attention to the examples provided for memorizing musical notes or the order of the solar system's planets. Consider any other acrostics that you may already be familiar with, and write these down in your notebook as examples.
Focus on the paragraph starting with "Rhymes" to review how you can use rhyming as a device to help recall information. Consider the examples provided about familiar ways in which rhymes are used to memorize factual information. Can you think of any times in your own academic career when you have used rhyme to aid your memory? Write these down in your notebook as examples.
Focus on the paragraph starting with "Jingles" to learn how the use of catchy music may help you recall information. Can you think of any advertisements that used a jingle to help make a product more memorable? Consider how you can use this device as you study. Write down any jingles that you remember in your notebook as examples.
8.1.4: Active Reviewing Techniques
Watch this video to learn three steps in the learning process: exposure, review, and practice. Especially note the active reviewing techniques covered at the end of the video.
8.2: Exercises to Improve Memory and Retention
Test your memory skills with this website. You will need to create a free, private account to access the resource. This is a great website (and free unless you want to keep exploring it past the free options) to improve your memory skills. Click on the large orange button titled "Start Training." Next, choose which areas you want to work on. Once you have completed this training, complete the registration process. The progress beaker in the upper right corner will fill up to 100% when you are done. Next, you will be given three beginning tests. Take the tests, and record or print your results to use in the activity assigned below.
Complete this activity based on your previous training on the Lumosity website and your textbook readings. Answer the activity questions to review your coursework in this unit.
Unit 8 Assessment
- Receive a grade
This quiz covers topics and terms that are related to using and improving your memory skills during college.