Research on the practice of massaging the head of a baby with hot water and ointments in Ghana. By Dzamesi Yael (Ph.D. in Science Education)
Memory and learning.
Memory, learning, and utilization of memory [55].
Memory is the most basic cognitive function used in the process of learning.
Learning is a mechanism by which new knowledge about the world is acquired.
Utilization of memory- Memory is a mechanism by which that knowledge is stored in the brain. However, it is more than that. Learning begins by receiving a sensory information (what we see, hear, smell, feel and taste), then it is processed together with existing knowledge. The existing knowledge is stored in the long-term memory and the processing of information is done by working memory. This process enable us to utilize memory to solve problems.
Long-term memory is a vast store of knowledge and a record of prior events which are kept for a long time. Memory consolidation in the long-term memory demands cellular and molecular changes that typically take place within the first minutes or hours of learning or experience. It results in structural and functional changes to nerve cells or sets of neurons, see "Connectivism and hierarchical models" page.
Working memory works, processes, and manipulates information. The perception of a new information depends many times on a relevant existing information in the long-term memory. If the new information is stored in the long-term memory without being processed and thus related in some way to some elements in the existing information, it would be available only in the same context that it was learnt, and so can be at most recited. This method has been given the common name of 'chew and pour', and it is a very popular method among students trying to memorize facts before exams. After exam, the information that was stored in that way can not be useful in any other way, and it is quite often forgotten. However, if the working memory recognizes some similarity between the new information and the existing information stored in the long-term memory, a link is formed between them. The working memory would then process and update the existing information according to the new information. This integration of a new and already an existing information forms a solid information in the long-term memory that would be available and useful again in solving problems in similar, but not necessarily the same, contexts. This method of learning is called 'meaningful learning' which simply means that the new information has a meaning, and it is relevant to the body of knowledge of the learner [165].
Efficiency of the working memory.
The working memory is generally viewed as a combination of multiple components working together, and its efficiency depends on the ability to control attention and to be more focused (less distracted). It also depends on the capacity to store, manage, and process more data or information [56, 57]. Thus, meaningful learning can not be achieved by the method of teaching alone, since people have different ability in controlling access to their working memory, as well as working with complex information. In analyzing a situation, some people are able to identify the relevant details, whereas others are distracted by the irrelevant details. The people who are able to identify the relevant details can deal with more complex information because they do not overload their long-term memory with irrelevant details. Complex information demands a high number of associations or connections between different bodies of knowledge that are stored in the long-term memory. Those people who are distracted by irrelevant details are easily confused, and so can only deal with less complex information that contain few connections between parts of knowledge in their long-term memory [57 58].
What do we mean when we say, "information with association between different parts of knowledge"? (Table 1)
Counting number 1, 2, 3, etc. may require no association between the individual numbers.
However, understanding that each number is larger by the quantity of one from the previous number, makes a connection or association between the numbers. Each association require at list 2 numbers or two elements. The understanding that one number is bigger than the previous one in one is an addition operation that associates between three elements: the two numbers being added: 2+1 and the sum: =3.
Ratios require the association between four numbers or four elements: 2/3 = 4/6. There is an association or a connection between 2 and 3, between 2 and 4, between 3 and 6 and between 4 and 6. A ratio of numbers is considerably harder to grasp because as more elements are present in the problem to be solved, the solution involves more associations between the elements and therefore, more stages. A broad understanding is demanded to comprehend the meaning of multiple associations between elements (Table 1).
Table 1: The connection between number of associations in a math operation, stages of a solution and understanding the association between the elements.
