Study Skills - RememberingChapter 7, CornerstoneProf. Jane McElligottLS100 Eight Skills

Short-term v. Long-term Memory

Short-term memory Long-term memory

• Short-term memory is one’s “working memory,” where you store info for a short time. Only about 5 – 7 new facts can be stored at a time. (Cornerstone, Chapter 7, p. 159)

• Long-term memory stores much more info and if you can store it right, through use of mnemonic devices or by going over flash cards, you’ll be able to retrieve it, just like you can retrieve a Word document from your files on your computer.

VCR3 - not for the TV!Increase memory power by taking these 5 steps as you read and study:1. Visualize – create word pictures in your mind or on paper;2. Concentrate - stay focused;3. Relate the info to something you know (for example, if you know how to use

Westlaw, the same research skills will help you in learning Lexis);4. Repeat the info out loud or even better, “teach” the material to a friend, family

member, your dog or cat, or even a stuffed animal;5. Review the info - go back and read and review the material over and over until

you have it down; use flash cards to review key terms.

Knowing v. Memorizing

KNOWING MEMORIZING

• “KNOWING info is OWNING the info; it belongs to you! You KNOW your name, your child’s or dog’s name, your address – you’ve repeated this info so much, there’s no way you’re going to forget it.

• “Memorizing” is something we do when we have to know facts for a quiz or exam or a speech we have to give, but we’re not committed to knowing it for life; it’s not that important to us.

Knowing• “Knowing something means that you have made a personal commitment

to make this information a part of your life.” (Cornerstone, Chapter 3, p. 161). It’s all in your ‘tude (attitude) whether this information is important enough for you to remember.

• Make the commitment to study hard, engage in active reading, and use effective study methods so you KNOW and OWN the material!

SQ3R MethodSQ3R - active reading and so much more!• Survey or preview the chapter you’re about to read;• Question – write questions that come to you as you survey and make it a

point to answer the questions as you read;• Read the chapter in active reading mode – highlight, take notes, look up

unfamiliar words in the dictionary, create flash cards for new words and new legal terms;

• Recite – explain what you learned from the chapter to a friend or family member and let them ask you questions about it. Having to “teach” what you read to someone else is the best test around to ensure you fully absorbed the material; and

• Review - once you finish the chapter and teach it to someone else, go back one more time and review the chapter, your notes, and flash cards to make sure you’ve got it down!

Mnemonic Devices • The term "mnemonic" comes from the Greek word "mnemon," meaning

“mindfulness." • Example of a mnemonic to remember the nine planets: What are Mnemonics? • "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally” – a mnemonic for math that sets out the order

of operations for math problems: Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication Division, Addition, and Subtraction. Here's a good explanation of how it applies: Order of Operations

• Colors of the rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet; it’s easier to remember Roy G. Biv – here he is (see the “G” in his nose!):

Jingles and Rhymes• Make up a song or rhyme to remember the elements of a crime or the

requirements for a valid contract … check out how Theo and Cockroach mastered Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar: Cosby Show Episode.

Quiz Question 1

1. Questioning can be an effective way for cooperative study groups to predict questions that others may have overlooked.

• True• False

Answer to Question 1• Answer: True• Questioning –members of the cooperative study group bring questions with them

to the study group meeting, especially potential exam questions or a question a study group member is having a tough time answering, so the group can cooperate and figure out the answer together and be prepared for the upcoming exam.

• Questioning, Comparing, Drilling, Brainstorming, Sharing, an Mapping are effective activities for study groups to use to “learn, share, and reinforce information” (Cornerstone, Chapter 3, p. 167).

Quiz Question 2

2. Mnemonic devices are tricks to help you put information into your short-term memory.

• True• False

Answer to Quiz Question 2

• Answer: False• Mnemonic devices help you put information into your long-term memory

(better than in just your short-term memory), where you can retrieve the information when needed.

(Cornerstone, Chapter 7, p. 163)

Quiz Question 3

• Why form cooperative learning groups? - For inspiration - There is strength in numbers - For excitement - All of the above

Answer to Quiz Question 3

• Answer: All of the above• Inspiration from others in the study group;• There’s strength in numbers – by brainstorming, a group could come up

with an answer to a problem that an individual might have been stuck on;

• Excitement from being in the group, learning as a team!

Quiz Question 4

4. Strategies for cramming include all of the following EXCEPT: • Using your syllabus or study guide• Repeating the information• Carefully choosing the material to study• Reminding yourself constantly not to get yourself into this position

again

Answer to Quiz Question 4• Answer: Reminding yourself constantly not to get yourself into this position again• Cramming is a bad route to take – at best, you’ll memorize enough information to

pass the test, running on your short-term memory, but you won’t know or own the information for the long term, which is essential to build up a foundation of knowledge in the law, public administration, political science or whatever your major may be.

• However, if you find yourself in the bad situation of having to study the night before an exam, it doesn’t help to keep blaming yourself and feeling bad about it – “ditch the blame game” and accept that you’re at fault for waiting so long to start studying, and get over it – do the best you can with the time you have left and use the “Studying in a Crunch” strategies listed in Cornerstone, Chapter 3, pp. 169 - 170.

Quiz Question 5

• 5. ________ is making a commitment to understanding relationships, making associations, comparing and contrasting, classifying, demonstrating, describing, and applying what you have learned.

• Rote memory• Long term memory• Knowing • Filing

Answer to Quiz Question 5

• Answer: Knowing• “Knowing,” as opposed to just memorizing, is when you make a commitment to

“own” the information by studying the material with all your heart - using active reading, VCR3 or SQR3, flash cards, mnemonics, study groups, etc. – whatever it takes to call that material your own!

• You “know” and “own” the material when you move from simply having memorized the material to being able to apply the material to the real world, compare and contrast it, etc. (Cornerstone, Chapter 3, p. 162).

The End