Spotlight On...

Working Memory

• Do you know of anyone who has difficulty memorizing information?
• What about someone who struggles to retain information during multi-step tasks, such as arithmetic?
• Do you or your child require significant repetition to learn new information?
• How often do directions need to be repeated to be understood and implemented?
• Is it challenging to do two things simultaneously, such as listen and take notes?

Nearly all aspects of human life depend on memory. Problems with memory can prevent and/or interfere with acquisition of skills and knowledge necessary for success in life. Memory problems are frequently the cause of learning struggles but often are overlooked. Over the past 35 years, working memory (WM) has emerged as an important area impacting memory performance.

Working memory is defined as management, manipulation and transformation of information drawn from either short-term or long-term memory. More importantly, WM is necessary for skill mastery, dealing with new information/problems/situations, maintaining new information and retrieving old information.

Why is WM important for learning? Mainly because of its limitations or limited capacity. A typical individual can manipulate only about four pieces of information at a time in WM. Unless the information is being manipulated, it remains in WM for only about two seconds. Successful learning is largely a function of the individual's WM capacity. The more automatic a task, the less WM required.

Conditions that have been shown to have WM deficits include ADHD, autism, cognitive disabilities, acquired brain injury/TBI, schizophrenia, stress and aging.

A significant relationship exists between the capacity of WM and the ability to learn. Documented significant relationships have been found between WM and the following areas of learning:

• reading decoding
• reading comprehension
• language comprehension
• spelling, following directions
• vocabulary development
• note taking
• written expression
• reasoning
• complex learning

Interventions to improve WM fall under two different categories:

1. Remediation = correcting a WM deficit by directly addressing the area of weakness.
2. Compensation = using the individual's cognitive/memory strengths and assets in an effort to bypass the deficit, thereby reducing its impact on learning and performance.

Until recently, limited success at remediating WM problems has been achieved. However, a training program called Cogmed has been developed recently that scientific studies have shown can improve WM through direct training. This intensive, targeted program was designed by leading neuroscientists to address WM deficits. The training is done at home on a PC and is supported by a coach from CNLD. Cogmed training is designed to give all users -- children, teenagers and adults – the best possible chance for maximizing training effects.

Compensatory strategies also can be introduced to support the client while s/he is undergoing Cogmed training, including:

• Daily review and checking of homework.
• Clear and structured presentations with lots of demonstrations, examples and questions.
• Initial, teacher-guided practice until success rate of 80% is reached.
• Guided practice and immediate corrective feedback until the student performs the skill independently.
• Independent practice until responses are firm, quick and automatic with 95% accuracy.
• Weekly and monthly reviews including systematic review of previously learned material.
• Reducing the complexity of communications such that the student can focus on one topic at a time.
• Not requiring multi-tasking within the classroom.

Please contact CNLD if you know of someone experiencing WM difficulties or if you are interested in more information about WM training, specifically Cogmed.

REFERENCES

Dehn, Milton. Working Memory and Academic Learning: Assessment and Intervention.

Pickering, Susan J, editor. Working Memory and Education.

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