STRATEGIES TO ENHANCE MEMEORY

OF A GIVEN KNOWLEDE USING THE BASIC STUDY

SKILLS

General introductionWe welcome and thank you for deciding to take a

course with Uganda Martyrs University through distance learning. Probably at the back of your mind you considered all those reasons that compel you not to follow a regular university course like employment, family commitments or even the comparative costs of your course under distance learning to on campus. That implies therefore that you will have more than your studies to consume your constant time of productivity.

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You will have to exercise self- control more than ever before.

This will require a lot of concrete planning to structure your time and activities so that each one gets the time it deserves. You also need to consider the most efficient way of doing whatever you do in terms of time, energy and cost.

At Uganda Martyrs University we want to support you to achieve more than you planned for from learning with us. That is why this study guide has been made with you in mind to give you basic life skills that will be handy in your learning and thereafter.

We shall present these skills and strategies in a logical way from when you get your module, through your private or discussion reading, research for more information, assignments, attending residential workshops and finally examinations.

For each of these we shall present questions to stimulate your refection and focus on what you should do then present a possible to do list.

The module•

As a distance learner the module be it electronic or hard copy is your main medium of instruction. It is paramount that you get it on time, keep it safely and utilize it.

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When you get your module you could consider answering the following questions:

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What are the objectives of this module and, each unit?

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What do the assignments require and when are they needed?

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What time do I require to complete the module before I sit its examinations?

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How efficiently can I apportion my time in the different activities in my life including the time for this module?

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What basic knowledge, skills, and competences should I get from the module that can improve my performance in my work place?

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Which students with the same module in my area can I arrange to discuss or consult in case of need?

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What reading lists have been given or what more reading material do I need and where can I get them from?

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Who could be the resource persons and learning resources in my proximity that I can consult for more understanding of this module?

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When is the residential workshop taking place?•

How does this module relate to the previous module if any?

Possible to do lists with the module

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Time management is a key element to your studying. Before you start to do your reading, it is essential for you to make for yourself a time table. It will enable you analyse the use you are making of your time. Remember that you don’t have enough reading time and thus you have to utilize that little time. Make a timetable for the module including activities like reading unit 1, 2....You need strategies to improve your memory.

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Read the module and unit by unit individually.

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Identify the linkage between the units.•

Respond to the questions provided in the module and your own created questions at the end of each unit.

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Evaluate yourself at the end of each unit and module in relation to the study objectives.

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Summarise

lessons learnt from the module.

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Begin applying the knowledge and skills accrued in the module and evaluate their impact in your daily work.

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Prepare questions and clarifications to seek during the residential workshop.

Reading skills •

Reading is an inevitable part of your learning and probably your workplace. You should learn to study while learning at the same time. In our life we find ourselves reading a letter, email, newspaper, novel, textbooks, announcements on the notice boards and the like most of the time. Regardless of what we are reading, we acknowledge that there is a message intended by the author for the reader and also the reader has a motivation to read this and not that.

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To make the best out of your reading you ought to have an objective you want to achieve clear in your mind. The objectives could be in relation to the volume to cover however, most importantly aim at the meaning and understanding you derive from your reading. It may be important for any student to reflect as to why they would need to read a module. It may be a good idea to start by answering the following questions:

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What message did the author want me to derive from this module?

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What am I going to gain by reading this module apart from passing an examination?

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How much time do I have to read this module?

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What quantity of the module can I read at a time?

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When, why, how and where should I read this module from?

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What will keep me motivated to read this module regardless of its complexity?

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What is the basic structure of this module or unit? Title, abstract headings and sub headings and conclusion?

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How can I evaluate my reading? Ie. is it possible to review my progress from time to time?

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What are the main points derived from my reading at the end of each unit and also at the end of the whole module?

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At the end, can I now answer any questions concerning this unit or module after my reading?

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After my reading can I put into practice what I have read? Have I learnt to do things that I was not able to do?

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What further reading do I ought to do to supplement the author's ideas?

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Keep a journal of your reading.

Sample to do list in reading

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Get an understanding of the structure of the module.

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Read the basics like content page, introduction, objectives and abstract.

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Read the body of the unit of the module keeping the basic structure in mind.

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Highlight or write down main points as you go along.

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Recite or talk to a friend or relative about what you have read and make sure that you read to understand.

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Close the module or unit and write what you have read.

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Note the key words to remember that help to elicit more info about the ideas.

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make an out line of your ideas. You can also draw a concept map or model or conceptual framework of your ideas.

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make note of difficult stuff that may need more consultation or reference.

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Supplement your module reading with reading other resources got from the reading lists and articles.

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Identify where the responses to the assignments come from within the module.

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Provide room for revision.•

Evaluate yourself if you have achieved the objectives of the unit or module.

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Avoid spotting.•

When taking notes from a given reference remember to write down the author, the title of the book, edition, place of publication and date at the top of your page. This will assist you a lot when writing out your assignment.

Strategies to enhance memory

You will therefore need the following strategies to enhance your memory:

1. REPEATE & REHEARSE“The more one

practices the luckier they get”

e.g in

sportsRepeating and rehearsing call for going over the material.

“The more you chew hard corn the softer it gets”

Teaching letters at Nursery level

A A A A A__

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__

__

__

a a a a a___

___

___

___

___

*The child has chance to rehearse & repeat at the same time

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Recite or talk to a friend or relative about what you have read and make sure that you read to understand.

2. INFORMATION PUT IN MORE MANAGEABLE CHUNKS

Use:AcronymsAcrosticsPeg wordsImaginative storiesConcept maps

“Reduce on the load the brain has to carry”

ACRONYMSVisual BASIC

• Beginner All purpose Symbolic Instruction Code

RDBMS• Relational Data Base

Management System

DNADeoxyribonucleic acid

IIRIRAIllegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act

Acronyms are abbreviations of what might have been too long or to complex to recall. The first letters of each word of a phrase is used.

ACROSTICS•

Small Men Have Eaten Oranges*The five great lakes of Canada are: Superior, Michigan, Huron,

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Erie,Ontario (or an acronym = HOMES)

Popular scientists can make a zoo in the low humid country side

*The reactivity series of chemical elements from the most to the least reactivePotassium, Sodium, Calcium, Magnesium, Aluminum, Zinc, Iron, Tin, Lead, Hydrogen, Copper, Silver

Creating imaginative sentences from the first letter of each new word of an idea or fact.

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Create a mnemonic (ACROSTICS) to remind you of the structure of the main points like; Richard Of York Gave Birth In Vail for the order of the colors of the rainbow –

Red,

Orange, Yellow, Blue, Indigo and Violet.

• Richard of York gave birth in vain

• Red• Orange• Yellow• Green• Blue• Indigo• Vain

The Colours of the rainbow (spectrum)

ROYGBIV can be taken as an acronym

PEG WORDS

Beef Male Exit Name

5 74 6321

Hang the to be recalled material on a prememorised set of words that create a sequence of mental pegs. Exploit rhyme of the words.

IMAGINATIVE STORY

Like the peg-words, this technique aims at reducing long lists into a more easily memorable form. Text is reduced to a memorable story.

E.GImagine you are instructing learners in components of a research proposal.

You can ask them to imagine they have been sent on a treasure hunt in an unknown place

“Imagine walking into, a cave in a forest, with the sought item on a piece of paper in bold (title).

There you find a stranger and you must introduce yourself and make an introduction of what has taken you there.

Many people have tried to get there so you need to find out what they managed to discover and what they failed to articulate. (literature review)

There should be some particular clues that you want to discover. You are therefore full of questions to research about. What are you going to do? What specific issue or treasure will your search address? What will others learn from your work?

Your visit to this forest and cave surely has a significance. Why is this search important? What are the implications of doing it? How does it link to other searches?

You have gone through a number of hurdles to get to the cave. The forest and the whole treasure hunt are not surely a bed of roses. You will encounter some limitations in your search.

You are forced to tell the stranger the way that you intend to approach the quest, the skills (techniques) and logic that you will use to address it. You will lay out your methodology clear.

After a hectic planning of your search you need to report about any assistance you found useful during the planning. You need to acknowledge the help rendered to you.(bibliography)

A CONCEPT MAP

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A graphical presentation of a single view of information.

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Characteristics:•

Hierarchical structure

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Relationship between concepts identified.•

More specific concepts included under more inclusive concepts

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In learning to construct a concept map, it is important to begin with a domain of knowledge that is very familiar to the person constructing the map.

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Links between different domains of knowledge on the map help to illustrate how these domains are related to one another.

Plants

stemsroots

leaves

have

foodgreen

flowers

seeds

petals

bear

produce

producemay have

may havecolour

store

Colour

produceare usually

buds

3. VISUALISE IMAGERY

Information is translated into visual forms.

This strategy combines the dominant modes of thinking to enhance the memory effort

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Visual images are three:

I.

Locational perspective

II.

Representational perspective

III.Transformational perspective

LOCATIONAL PERSPECTIVE

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Associate material to be remembere

d with some path of familiar objects or places such as the furniture in your house or landmarks.

In case we have dead lines to beat we can use the images below as reminders of the urgency with which the work is needed.

Most UrgentMore urgent

Not badly needed

Urgent

No rush

REPRESENTATIONAL PERSPECTIVE

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More consciousness required as ideas and events are presented in one’s mind.

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A concept map or a simple drawing made to represent the text.

TRANSFORMATIONAL PERSPECTIVEInformation is translated from text into some contrived image that triggers the recall of appropriate material

4. SPACE STUDY“Over loading and over pumping can cause disastrous effects”

Organise active study periods of about 45 minutesBreak for 5-10 minutesDivide lengthy study assignments into smaller blocks of time spaced throughout the day.Fatigue interferes with concentration and retention.

OTHER WAYS OF CHUNKING UP INFORMATION

1.1.

SummarisationSummarisation: condense material in few sentences that reflect central idea. Helps structuring & relating ideas.

2.2.

Note takingNote taking: important details written down while listening to lectures or auditory information.

3.3.

Advanced organisersAdvanced organisers: Compile introductory passages that facilitate he learning & retention of unfamiliar but meaningful material.

Discussion skills

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A discussion group will help you as a learner to better understand difficult concepts and you can learn from the knowledge of other members. It can further provide you the opportunity to teach and explain information and concepts to other group members. Studying at a distance isolates you from the contact with fellow students that you would have in a regular on-campus class.

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Chances of discussing may not come easy unless you make a deliberate effort. Opportunities for discussion are normally feasible during the residential workshop, however you can make an effort within the area of your proximity to form a discussion group. Venue of discussion can also be a challenge in such a case if you cannot even identify an open park; you could consider going to our diocesan centers or regional center. Before you even consider what to discuss you need to find answers to the following questions:

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Why should I have a discussion group?

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Who should be in our group?•

What should be the size of the group?

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What rules should govern our discussion group?

Discussion to do lists

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Identify fellow students within your locality.•

Determine characteristics of your group size, structure, purpose, roles and individual assignments.

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Form a study group of reasonable size -

5-10 students.

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Have ground rules for discussion –

e.g. start time, duration, limitations of the group, discussion procedure and problem solving strategies.

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Agree on an itinerary for your discussion.

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Specify alternative venues for your discussions.

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Get contacts of your discussion mates.

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List expectations from the discussion group.

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Peer evaluation and shared self evaluation.

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A discussion is successful when you have had thorough preparation for it. This may involve:

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Ensuring that each of the discussant has the topic of discussion in time.

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Private personal reading thoroughly done.•

An idea of the guiding question that you are to discuss.

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Individual attempt to respond to questions.•

The individuals identifying areas that they need to seek clarification on.

The Discussion

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To have a successful discussion you need to consider having a basic structure to keep you focused. Below is an example;

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Highlight its sub topics (Definition of forgetting, causes, effects and solutions).

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Phrase the topics into questions.•

Questions about definitions and clarity of terms –

What is forgetting? What are the

known causes of forgetting?•

Negotiation of meaning questions

– what

are the alternative descriptions/ causes of forgetting? What are the examples that help to gain more understanding?

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Weighting questions of opposing sides good and bad, strength and weakness, right or wrong e.g. what are the advantages and disadvantages of forgetting? How strong is which?

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You can also consider questions of how does this relate to what you already know as the right thing e.g. What are the theories of forgetting described in theories?

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Consider questions on how to make the best out of what you discuss in real life e.g. How can we help our students not to forget?

Analyze the problem•

What is known about the problem based on the research?

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Is there sufficient information about the problem?

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What is the extent of the problem?

Criteria for your answers to the problem•

You decide what makes this answer right or not e.g. extent of supporting information from literature, relevance to your experience, usefulness of the answer –

applicable.

Doing your assignments

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Assignments do assist you a lot to judge whether you have understood and learnt the content in your modules. As part of your course, you will be required to do assignments in relation to your module. In this booklet we will provide you tips on how to do your assignments:

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First know when you should hand in the assignment.

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Establish whether it is group or individual assignment.

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Read the question carefully and also have to know the limit of the assignment in terms of pages, information needed.

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In some cases the facilitators may provide you with guidelines regarding their expectations from you.

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In your own mind sketch the different parts of the answers e.g. compare x and y, you will need to know advantages of x and also those of y.

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Find out the study materials you may need. The first source of material is you, then colleagues and resource materials from the library sources.

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Make sure that you get other sources to get a broader view and also to understand well what you have learnt.

Essay writing skills •

An assignment is complete when it is written out. This may be in form of an essay, report or dissertation. Regardless please consider basic items like the title, name, registration number, course, facilitators' name, quotations, in text referencing, recognizing the source of information, font size and spacing. We shall concentrate on the essay. Your assignment essay should have at least four main components: Introduction, main body, conclusion and references.

Introduction•

Focus the reader with the structure of the essay. For example this write up addresses the problem of forgetting. This will be in relation to the definition, causes, effects and solutions.

The body•

This should follow the structure outlined above. Each point should be put in a paragraph. Each part should bring out your views, argument and experience if any regarding the topic. Stress a point you would want to address with examples and support from the literature.

Conclusion•

This is a summary statement which leads to the importance of your argument. It should show briefly what you have been arguing about. Make sure that you summarize the findings or arguments by the main points.

NB: Please make a photocopy of all the assignments

Referencing your work (See details in pdf)

Guidelines for the presentation of footnotes in scholarly work

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Footnotes can be printed at the end of the document or at the bottom of the page on which the cue number appears. Use footnotes for references only-additional material should be within the text-and try to keep footnotes to a minimum.

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use the Harvard citation System

Research for more information

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You will realize that the module you receive is a guide and therefore may not include all the information you need to pass your exams or to apply what you are learning. Therefore you need to put time aside for extra research. To do a good research you may need to answer the following:

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You should have read the unit or topic in the module.

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Identify the areas that need more information.

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You may generate questions that will guide you with the search.

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Put together the resource material –

Internet search, text books.

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Read the resource material in light of your questions.

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You can also get more information from resource persons through a discussion, focus group discussion or interview.

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Make notes.

Residential workshop•

Interpersonal communication skills

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Listening skills•

Questioning skills

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Note taking skills

Examination skillsThe examination•

Once in the examination room, please relax and do not panic once you have been given the examination paper.

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Best wishes

ConclusionFrom this guide, it is clear that the

printed module is the main medium of receiving your learning materials. Study with a purpose and do not read it to memorise but rather construct new knowledge as you study and enjoy your learning experience.