Annotated Bibliographies for Module 3

#1: Driscoll, M. (2005). Psychology of Learning for Instruction (3rd ed.) (pp. 77-91). Boston,
MA: Allyn and Bacon.

Here the author further explores the concept of information processing and the different
ways we absorb new data into our memories. Sensory memory refers to a person’s initial
exposure to a piece of information, and it is only stored long enough to be pushed into the
short-term memory for processing. Short-term memory is often mentioned interchangeably
with working memory, because this is where information is stored to be used in immediate
tasks before progressing into long-term memory. The idea of selective attention implies that
when a person is presented with information, all of the input cannot be processed at once.
This is an important aspect of designing an ideal learning environment, because if too many
distractors are present learning cannot take place efficiently.

In order to help information stay in memory longer, the techniques of rehearsal and
encoding are often employed. Rehearsal is simply going over a piece of new information
over and over until it is committed to long-term memory. Repeating a series of numbers or
just working with a concept repeatedly are examples of this. Encoding is taking new
information and connecting it with prior knowledge and schemas in order to make sense of
it. If these two concepts are employed, information is much more likely to be stored in long-
term memory.

#2: Baddeley, A.D. (1992). Working memory. Science, 255, 556-559.

This article illustrates the progression of memory theory from the belief in one single
memory system to a two-part system to his own idea that there are three parts to working
memory. The governing entity of working memory, the central executive, distributes
information into the appropriate subordinate parts, the visuospatial sketch pad and the
phonological loop. Baddeley proposes that the visuospatial sketch pad is the processing
system for pictorial information and also holds information regarding how we relate to other
objects in our environment. The phonological loop is the processor for any information that
is based in language, whether auditory or written.

Baddeley’s theories on these memory systems combine to create a new view of working
memory which he felt would better explain the nuances of how people absorb, process, and
retain information. In his opinion, continuing to develop his three-pronged theory of
information processing could lead to a more developed understanding of working memory.

#3: Miller, G. A. (1956). The magical number seven, plus or minus two: some limits on our
capacity for processing information. Psychological review, 63(2), 81.

In this slightly dated article, Miller tries to explain people’s judgement processes and
channel capacity for learning in terms of “variance of input and output.” He cites multiple
studies in which a learner’s accuracy and capacity to remember stimuli have been tested,
and then he extrapolates these studies into his own theories of organizing information into
bits and chunks and recoding information to process it. He used an example of how radio
telegraph operators learn each dot and dash as a bit of information in the beginning, and as
they grow more comfortable with this new language, they begin to see each word or
sentence as a chunk of information.

Another important and more applicable (for our purposes) example of this recoding idea
was learning a concept by translating presented information into “your own words” as a way
to integrate it into your preexisting schemas and prior knowledge. According to the author,
memorizing is actually organizing information in this fashion. This is a much simpler way to
explain how learners are able to process information.

#4: Kalyuga, S. (2010). Schema acquisition and sources of cognitive load. In J.L. Plass, R.
Moreno, & R. Brünken, Cognitive Load Theory (pp. 48-64). New York: Cambridge.

In this chapter, the author explains how important cognitive load is to an efficient learning
experience. In order to ensure that a learner absorbs the desired information, the instructor
must design instruction to manage the presentation of the information properly. A novice
learner would not be able to handle the same concepts at the same rate as a more
experienced learner would, because the expert learner would have prior knowledge
organized into schemas waiting in long-term memory. If too much information is presented
at once, the extraneous load would be too great for a beginning learner to handle. Working
memory would reach capacity without any information progressing into long-term memory.

Pre-existing schemas, while creating a large advantage for an expert learner, may also
hinder a novice learner if those schemas are based on misconceptions or preconceived
ideas. As the goal is to consolidate information into schemas which are stored in and
accessed from long-term memory, instructors must be careful to present information in
small steps and keep the work load germane to the task at hand.

#5 Baddeley, A. (2010). Working Memory. Current Biology, 20(4), R136-R140. Retrieved

January 24, 2018, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/.
I selected this article because I wanted to find out a little bit more about Baddeley’s ideas on
working memory. As it turns out, he continued to study and test his theory, and through
further research he modified it along the way. While he continued to assert that the working
memory has several components, he decided that revisions needed to be made to make his
original theory more exact.

He added an “episodic buffer” to the original three parts of working memory (central
executive, visuospatial sketchpad, and phonological loop). This third slave system is
thought to help in chunking episodic information which can then be absorbed into long-term
memory. Baddeley mentions other researchers’ findings in relation to his own, particularly
that of Cowan. He says that while Cowan’s more attention-based model differs from his
own, both theories are beneficial when studying the human mind’s working memory and
potential for learning.