Topic

Information
Processing II:
Advance
Organisers and
Memorisation

LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of this topic, you should be able to:
1."

Identify the features of advance organisers and memorisation ;

2."

Describe the process of each of the models;

3."

Identify the strengths and weaknesses of each model; and

4."

Apply each of the models in the classroom.

X" INTRODUCTION
This topic focuses on the information processing family of models; namely
advance organisers (the advance organiser model) and the memorisation (the
memory model). Advance organisers were introduced by Ausubel (1963)
focusing on the best ways of scaffolding ideas while memorisation focuses on
building connections of items conceptually.

SELF-CHECK 5.1
What are the differences between advance organisers and memorisation?

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WHAT IS THE ADVANCE ORGANISER

MODEL?

Advance organisers were introduced by Ausubel (1963) who believes that the
role of a teacher is to organise subject matter and present information through
lectures, readings and providing tasks to the learner to integrate what has been
learned (Joyce, 2009). The role of a teacher is to organise the presentation to be
learned while the students are to master ideas and information. The advance
organisers allow students to strengthen their cognitive structures, their
knowledge of a particular subject at any given time. Ausubel believes that
students minds should be able to receive and process information in order for
learning to take place.
Now read the following scenario.
Scenario 1
Mrs Thomas is teaching her students poetry and wants them to know the
differences between metaphor and simile. She begins by presenting an
organiser. The organiser differentiates the two literary devices by showing
examples such as he is as fierce as a beast to represent a simile and he is a
beastfor a metaphor. She explains that simile makes comparison by using
phrases such as; as___ as and like a___. On the other hand, metaphor does not
use these phrases and a few examples are provided to differentiate both
literary devices.
Mrs Thomas then presents her students with a poem and asks them to identify
the literary devices. They list down the literary devices and then discuss in
groups for their choice of answers.
Scenario 1 is an example on how advance organisers are used. Mrs Thomas
introduces her students to the difference between metaphor and simile as an
advance organiser. This is achieved by pointing out that simile uses phrases for
comparison such as as ___ as and like a ____among others. She provides
examples for better comprehension. She then presents her students with a poem
and asks them to read and identify words or phrases that represent metaphor
and simile. The students come up with a list and discuss why they have selected
those phrases.

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ACTIVITY 5.1
How do advance organisers allow for meaningful learning to take place?

Ausubel (1963) believes in the mastery of academic material through

presentation. He is concerned with how teachers organise and present
information meaningfully for the learners to understand and comprehend. He
believes that a teacher plays an important role as an organiser of subject matter.
Therefore the teacher should be able to organise and present what is to be
learned by the learners. The advance organisers provide concepts and principles
that should be learned by the students directly. Now read the following scenario.
Scenario 2
A teacher takes her 10-year-old pupils on a visit to the zoo. Before entering the
zoo, she says, I want to give you an idea that will let you understand the
types of animals you are going to see. You are going to see various types of
animals in a short while. There are some animals that roam on land while
others can be seen swimming in the water. Recall what we have learned last
week on land and sea animals. The teacher further provides examples of
animals from each category.
As they begin their tour, the teacher points out the various types of animals
found. Do you see here, she asks, That is a crocodile. As you can see, the
crocodile is moving towards land. There are some animals that can live on
land and in the water as well. Then she continues by saying, Look at the
features of the crocodile. What does it need to be able to live in the water?
Scenario 2 shows how the teacher was able to use the advance organisers where
she provides ideas that can be linked to the particular characteristics of the
animals. She provided the intellectual scaffolding to structure ideas and
information with regards to the types of animals found in the zoo. Advance
organisers allow the teacher to strengthen pupils cognitive structures
(organising knowledge in the mind). Ausubel believes that cognitive structure
plays an important role in making meaningful learning of new materials (Joyce et
al., 2009, p. 249).

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ACTIVITY 5.2
Define meaningful learning based on your own experiences.

A persons previous knowledge is normally stored in the cognitive structures of

the brain. In order for acquisition of new knowledge to take place and to be
meaningful, previous knowledge or schema needs to be activated by means of an
introductory instructional strategy (Ausubel, 1978). It provides a mental
scaffolding to learn new information (Hassard, 2005).
Meaningful learning requires to the following:
(a)"

Preparation of the learner;

(b)" Organisation of the material by the teacher;

(c)"

What the learner has learned is intellectually linked and understood in the
context of the previously learned; and

(d)" The learner must be ready to comprehend and relate what is being
presented, rather than to memorise.
Learners are said to be active learners where they are required to relate the new
material to their existing knowledge. Advance organisers are a deductive
information processing model and are normally presented at the beginning of the
lesson. Ausubel (1963) proposes that new ideas can only be usefully learned if
they can be related to already available concepts or propositions by the learners.

5.1.1

Principles Governing Advance Organisers

There are two principles that govern advance organisers. First is progressive
differentiation. It refers to the organisation of the content in the subject field. It
simply means that the most general ideas of the discipline are presented first,
followed by more detailed and specific ideas. One example is seen in the earlier
scenario when the teacher introduced two literary terms: metaphor and simile.
She defines and provides examples for each of the terms.
Second is integrative reconciliation. It refers to the need for the new
materials/ideas to be learned by relating them to previously learned context. One
example is the syllabus used in the Standard Curriculum for Primary Schools
(KSSR) where the sequence of the curriculum is organised in such a way that
each successive learning is related to previous topics. Another example is found

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in the earlier scenario where the teacher asks her students to recall what they
have learned in class on land and sea animals and relate to the animals that can
live in both worlds.

5.1.2

Categories of Advance Organisers

There are two categories of advance organisers: expository organisers and

comparative organisers. Expository organisers are used when unfamiliar
materials are taught. New schema is built by providing new information. These
represent the intellectual scaffold on which students will hang onto the new
information as they encounter it (Joyce, 2009). For example, a teacher can
introduce the story of the well-known Hellen Keller to her students and discuss
her difficulty in communicating with others and the use of sign language. Later,
the students will be able to use this new information (sign language) when
learning about the mode of communication.
On the other hand, comparative organisers are used for learners to recall
previous knowledge by activating the existing schema. It is used for familiar
materials by discriminating between old and new concepts. For example, in a
literature class, if the learners have already learned about Robert Frost and are
now about to learn about William Wordsworth, a compare and contrast double
bubble map would aid learners to learn more about each poets style of writing.
The information gained from the advance organiser will aid learners to progress
in their learning.
Advance organisers can take many forms such as a simple oral introduction by
the teacher, student discussions, outlines, timelines, charts, diagrams and concept
maps (Brandsford, 2004).
According to University of Pittsburgh research on advance organisers, the
following strategies can function as advance organisers:
(a)"

Use charts, diagrams, oral presentations or concept maps. For example,

provide a graphic that contains a visual clue about a complex relationship
among many parts;

(b)" Give a scenario and ask students to infer rules based upon their current
knowledge;
(c)"

Have students identify the characteristics of a known phenomenon and

then relate it to the new idea/concept. For example, discuss characteristics
of air pollution to introduce the effect it has on the environment and living
things;

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(d)" Offer renderings of different types of geometric forms before discussing

their individual likenesses and differences;
(e)"

Review basic concepts of society (in order to activate the students' schema
for "culture") prior to studying a unit on culture;

(f)"

Ask students to compare and contrast the new content based on what they
already know. For example, what can they tell about its colour, shape,
smell, feel or taste? and

(g)" Identify a problem and ask for a reason why it may occur (before teaching
the reason). For example, discuss the origins of a war before describing its
major battles.

SELF-CHECK 5.2
Identify the different types of advance organisers.

ACTIVITY 5.3
Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of using advance organisers in the
classroom.

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Advance Organisers

Teaching using the advance organiser model involves three phases as described
in Table 5.1.
Table 5.1: Three Phases in Advance Organiser Model
Phase
(1)

Presentation
Organisers

Description
of

Advance

x" Clarify aims of the lesson.

x" Present organiser.
x" Identify defining attributes.
x" Give examples or illustrations where appropriate.
x" Provide context.
x" Repeat.
x" Prompt

awareness of learners
knowledge and experience.

(2)

relevant

Presentation of Learning Task x" Present material.

or Material
x" Make logical order of learning material explicit.

x" Link material to organiser.

(3)

Strengthening
Organisation

Cognitive x" Use principles of integrative reconciliation.

x" Elicit critical approach to subject matter.

x" Clarify ideas.
x" Apply ideas actively (such as by testing them).
Source: Joyce et al. (2009)

There are two principles that govern advance organisers. The first is related to
the way content should be presented. The most general ideas of a subject should
be presented first and then progressively differentiated in terms of detail and
specificity. Second, the instructional materials should attempt to integrate new
material with previously presented information through comparisons and crossreferencing of new and old ideas.

5.1.4

Advance Organisers in the Classroom

One of the strategies of using advance organisers to teach is PLAN as proposed

by Caverly (1997). PLAN refers to Predict/Locate/Add/Note. This strategy is
used before, during and after reading. Table 5.2 displays the steps on how PLAN
is carried out.

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Table 5.2: The PLAN Strategy

P

Predict by previewing the text and creating a concept map. A tree

trunk with extending branches is recommended.

Locate prior background knowledge on the map with checks and

new concepts with question marks.

Add new branches to the map to represent new knowledge acquired

during reading. Verify, modify and add to prior knowledge.
Confirm the new concepts with question marks.

Note, after reading, if the macrostructure of the material is indeed

what they have predicted prior to reading. If the structure is
different, they construct a new map to better represent the authors
rhetorical structure.
Source: Caverly (1997)

For
further
explanation
of
the
PLAN
strategy,
http://dept.clcillinois.edu/vpe/gened/pdf/Reading_PLAN.pdf

refer

to

Another form of advance organisers is concept webbing or mapping which is

pictorial in nature. It uses a hierarchical, visual display of various graphs to map
out the main concept and the supporting material. Students with disabilities who
use graphic representations as advance organisers perform better on tests, due in
part to the way the organisers provide retention, recall, and scaffolding of new
ideas and concepts with preexisting schemata (Robinson, 1998). In addition, the
visual organisation increases students understanding by providing a skeletal
map that increases their ability to link new concepts with prior knowledge;
therefore, increasing retention and recall (Hassard, 2005).
Atherton (2005) suggests that advance organisers could also be used as notetaking devices. He suggests gapped handouts (uncompleted handouts), which
leave blanks for students to fill in as the teacher provides instruction. The teacher
can choose to leave large spaces for note-taking or simple blanks where
keywords can be placed. Gapped handouts can also take the form of concept
webs, charts, and tables. Later, these handouts can be used as study guides for
tests (Atherton, 2005). Refer to Table 5.3 for an example.

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Table 5.3: Gapped Handout

Instruction: Read Jonathans daily routine and fill in the table below.
I usually get up late about 8 oclock in the morning. I normally have light breakfast
with my parents around 8.45am and then leave for work at 9.15am. I go to work by
bus and reach my office just before ten.
When I arrive at the office, I always check my email. Then I will do the paper work
and have a meeting with my team from 12.00 till 12.30pm. During lunch hour, I
usually have my meal prepared by my mother. I do not prefer eating at the cafeteria
since the food is not very good.
I usually finish work at about 7 oclock and reach home about one hour later. I
normally have dinner with my parents at about 9 oclock.
Time

Activity

8.00
AM

8.45
9.15

PM

Mayer (1979) proposed the following guidelines for constructing advance

organisers:
(a)"

Short set of verbal or visual information - This will allow learners to recall
information;

(b)" Present prior to learning a larger body of to-be-learned information - The

organisers should be introduced first to prepare learners to grasp
information or as a lead-in to a much complex subject matter;
(c)"

Containing no specific content from the to-be-learned information - The

content should be short since the organiser is used to introduce the
information that is to follow. The advance organiser should not include any
of the specific information that will be presented later. It should deal with
the subject or content at a more abstract and general level;

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(d)" Providing the means of generating the logical relationships among the
elements in the to-be-learned information - The organiser should enable
learners to see and make the link between the structure of the discipline or
subject and the information to be presented later; and
(e)"

Influencing the learners encoding process - The link mentioned earlier will
allow learners to enhance their understanding and recall the details
presented later.

5.1.5

Advantages of Advance Organisers

There are several advantages of using advance organisers in the teaching and
learning process including the following:
(a)"

To teach both concepts and generalisations;

(b)" To teach content within a lesson;

(c)"

To view or make a clear link between concepts, for example subordinate,

co-ordinate and super ordinate relationships;

(d)" To learn new ideas and relate them to already available concepts; and
(e)"

To organise the material which is to be learned for the learners.

5.2

WHAT IS THE MEMORISATION MODEL?

Memorisation is one of the techniques used in remembering facts and

information. Our everyday lives are governed by memorisation. For example,
one would memorise the things needed to be completed or bought.
Remembering things can be achieved only if one pays attention to the things they
are focusing on. For example, you are unlikely to remember what is on display
on the isle of a supermarket unless you pay particular attention to the items. As
students, you would likely try to memorise information and facts in preparing
yourself to sit for an examination. However, certain information will be forgotten
once the examination is over.
Joyce et al. (2009) presented three different cues that link to memorisation. The
first is retrieval cues that refer to the comparison made from one item to the other
and rehearse what we have gained. This information becomes retrieval cues that
allow us to sort through our memories at later times to locate information.
Retrieval cues are normally stored in the short-term memory.

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Episodic cues, on the other hand, relate to the long-term memory dealing with
sequences of experience to which one is exposed. For example, relating bitterness
of bitter gourd to the medicine taken when one was young. Fear of a dog that
follows being bitten by a dog. Episodic cues play a role in remembering past
events and also allow us to predict the future events based on the past. They will
also allow us to make decisions on what to do.
Categorical cues deal with conceptualising items by categorising. These cues deal
with the ability to discriminate between things into different categories. For
example, when one sees the rainbow, we see it in terms of distinct colours.
Another example is when we categorise our students in the classroom according
to gender (boys and girls) or proficiency level.
Joyce (2009) claims that it is important for one to be able to memorise skilfully
since competence based on knowledge is essential for survival. Therefore, one
should be able to have the ability to increase learning power and the capability of
storing information.
There are various ways for one to remember what needs to be recalled at a later
stage. The first, which is very common, is through rote learning. The rote
procedure requires one to say what is to be memorised over and over again until
the information is implanted in the brain. This is not an effective form of
memorising and takes a longer time to remember. Besides, it does not make any
link or relationship of the things to be memorised; hence rote learning may not
be meaningful for the learner.

ACTIVITY 5.4
Try and recall the time when you were a student and were asked to
memorise a list of things. How did you memorise them?

5.2.1

The Link-Word Method

It is important for more mental activity to take place in order for a richer mental
context. Additional associations need to be linked to memorisation to increase the
cognitive activity (Joyce, 2009). One of the ways of achieving this is through the
link-word method. It allows learners to either:
(a)"

Remember familiar material to link with the unfamiliar items; or

(b)" Provide an association to establish the meaning of a new material.

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Studies have indicated that learners who are able to master the link-word
method use more elaborate strategies for memorising material as compared to
less effective memorisers.
One example of link-word method is shown in Figure 5.1. The link-word method
is used to help young learners to remember the numbers. For example, number
one is linked to the word bun.
one

= bun

six

= sticks

two

= shoe

seven = heaven

three = tree

eight = gate

four = door

nine

= vine

five

ten

= hen

= hive

Figure 5.1: Link-word memory exercise using numbers

Source: http://www.eudesign.com/mnems/_mnframe.htm

Besides linking numbers to the associated words, they also rhyme for easy recall.
For examples; one-bun, two-shoes and three-tree. Students can also visualise the
numbers with the pictures they represent to create a strong mental association
between numbers and words that rhyme with it. Besides allowing students to
recall the numbers in the correct order, this method allows learners to pronounce
the numbers correctly as well.

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ACTIVITY 5.5
Imagine you are taking the literature class and are asked to memorise a
list of American poets. How would you go about memorising them?

One of the ways of memorising the list is through the link-word-method as

shown below.
Name list

Robert Frost, Emily Dickinson, Walt Whitman, Sylvia

Plath, T. S. Eliot, W. B. Yeats, John Milton

Reorganised list

T.S. Eliot, Sylvia Plath, Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost,

John Milton, Walt Whitman, W. B. Yeats

Cue Phrase

Eli, Please Dont Freeze My White Yogurt

5.2.2

Mnemonics

Mnemonics is one of the methods used to help one remember information better.
It connects words to objects, events, actions and qualities that they represent
(Joyce, 2009). It can be used in various disciplines including language,
mathematics and science. The word mnemonics originated from the Greek
mnemonikos, referring to the mind.
Mnemonics are used widely in aiding learners to remember and recall
information easily. One example is shown below.
Thirty days hath September;
April, June, and November;
All the rest have thirty-one;
Excepting February alone;
Which hath but twenty-eight, in fine;
Till leap year gives it twenty-nine.
The example is a form of a rhyme used to teach learners the number of days in
each month of the year. Mnemonics come in various forms. Among them are
through the use of acronyms. Look at the example below.

Monkey Nut Eating Means Old Nutshells In Carpet.

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The acronym above is used to allow learners to remember the correct spelling of
the word mnemonic. Through the memorisation of the phrase, one would easily
identify and recall the spelling of the intended word by taking the initial letters of
each word.
Other examples of spelling mnemonics are shown below:
(a)"

A Rat In The House May Eat The Ice Cream (ARITHMETIC);

(b)" Rhythm Helps Your Two Hips Move (RHYTHM);

(c)"

George's Elderly Old Grandfather Rode A Pig Home Yesterday

(GEOGRAPHY); and

(d)" Trails Of My Old Red Rose Over Window (TOMORROW).

Source: http://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples/examples-of-mnemonics.html

Other mnemonic technique uses the initial letters of a phrase to memorise the
order of a list of items. For example, try to recall the names of the planets in the
solar system starting with the one closest to the sun. This task would seem
difficult but through the use of mnemonics one could easily memorise and recall
the order accurately.
My Very Easy Method: Just Set Up Nine Planets.
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto.
There are also other ways of remembering which is through the use of visuals.
For example, in order to remember the number of days in each month of the year,
the use of fists allows for easy recall. The method involves placing your two fists
together with the thumbs tucked in and counting across the knuckles and spaces
in between (but not counting the space between the hands). If each month is
assigned to a knuckle or space in turn, each knuckle month has 31 days, whilst all
of the space months have just 30 days; except of course for February!
The number of days in each month can also be found by counting across the
knuckles and valleys on the back of each clenched fist from left to right as you
can see in Figure 5.2.

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Figure 5.2: Remembering the days in the months

Source: http://www.eudesign.com/mnems/_mnframe.htm

Other examples of visual mnemonics are shown in Figure 5.3.

Figure 5.3: Mnemonics for ordering objects in the solar system (left);
and correctly spelling does (right)
Source:http://www.google.com.my/search?q=visual+mnemonics&tbm

Mnemonics can also be in a form of a poem as shown below where besides

enjoying recitation, learners will be able to comprehend parts of speech.

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Every name is called a NOUN,

As field and fountain, street and town;
In place of noun the PRONOUN stands,
As he and she can clap their hands;
The ADJECTIVE describes a thing,
As magic wand and bridal ring;
The VERB means action, something done To read and write, to jump and run;
How things are done, the ADVERBS tell,
As quickly, slowly, badly, well;
The PREPOSITION shows relation,
As in the street, or at the station;
CONJUNCTIONS join, in many ways,
Sentences, words, or phrase and phrase;
The INTERJECTION cries out, 'Hark!

I need an exclamation mark!'

Through Poetry, we learn how each
of these make up the PARTS OF SPEECH."
Source: http://www.eudesign.com/mnems/_mnframe.htm

5.2.3

Concepts in Enhancing Memory

Joyce (2009) identified the following concepts as techniques in enhancing

memory of learning material:
(a)"

Awareness
Paying attention to things or ideas is the basic principle in remembering.
This will create an awareness leading to learning.

(b)" Association
This is a concept of linking a new piece of information with something
familiar. For example, remembering the spelling of the word bouquet by
associating to the object flower. Therefore, a teacher can provide the cue
A bouquet of flowers for better understanding of the meaning and spelling.
(c)"

Link System
This is related to making connections between two ideas. For example,
what would you do if you are asked to remember these words?
cat

broom bicycle

elephant

hat

scissors

carpet

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You may start by visualising an unusual picture such as shown in Figure 5.4.

Figure 5.4: An unusual picture

The link system is based on the combination of mental images. Imagine a

picture of the first item cat in your mind. Now you need to link the first
item to the second, which is the broom. Now picture the cat holding a
broom. Next step is to link the broom to the next item, bicycle. Picture the
cat with the broom riding a bicycle. Next, imagine an elephant with a hat,
holding a pair of scissors and flying on a carpet. If you have actually seen
these mental pictures in your mind you will have no trouble remembering
the seven items in sequence.
(d)" Ridiculous Association
This association is linked by identifying items or objects that are ridiculous,
impossible or illogical. There are several ways of making an association
ridiculous.
(i)"

Rule of Substitution
Example: If you are to remember a tree and a pair of chopsticks,
picture the tree holding chopsticks on one of its branches.

(ii)" Out of Proportion Rules

This works by making small things gigantic or changing big things
into miniatures. Example: Picture a tiny tree growing on a huge pair
of chopsticks.
(iii)" Rule of Exaggeration
Example: Picture hundreds of trees running down the street paved
with thousands of chopsticks.

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Substitute-Word System
This is used to remember abstract words. Take any word or phrase and
think of something that sounds like or reminds you of. Example:
Remembering parts of a flowering plant:
x" For the petal, picture a flower pedaling a bicycle;
x" For the stamen, use the words steam and men. Picture men emitting
steam from their bodies or surrounded by steam. Hissing noises
associated with the steam or the smell of sweat makes the picture more
vivid. The steam image could be tied more closely to flowers if an
image were made showing a flower wilting in a steam room or growing
out of a steaming teapot tended by a group of men; and
x" For the pistil, picture one evil-looking flower with a pistol holding up a
cowering flower.
Source: http://www.muskingum.edu/~cal/database/general/memory3.html

Table 5.4 highlights examples of techniques you can use to memorise important
information.
Table 5.4: Examples of Memory Techniques
When to Use It

Technique

Example

For information
involving key words

Acronym - an invented
combination of letters with each
letter acting as a cue to an idea
you need to remember.

BRASS is an acronym for

how to shoot a rifle-Breath, Relax, Aim, Sight,
Squeeze.

For information
involving key words

Acrostic - an invented sentence

where the first letter of each
word is a cue to an idea you
need to remember.

EVERY GOOD BOY

DESERVES FUN is an
acrostic to remember the
order of the G-clef notes on
sheet music-- E,G,B,D,F.

For ordered or
unordered lists

Rhyme-Keys - a 2-step memory

process:

Food groups:

1." Memorise key words that

can be associated with
numbers (one-bun);
2." Create an image of the items
you need to remember with
key words. (A bun with
cheese on it will remind me
of dairy products.)

1." Dairy products: onebun-cheese on a bun.

2." Meat, fish, and poultry:
two-shoe-livestock with
shoes.
3." Grains: three-tree-sack
of grain hanging from
tree.
4." Fruit and vegetables:
four-door- opening a

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door and walking into a

room stocked with
fruits and vegetables.
For approximately
twenty items

Loci Method - Imagine placing

the items you want to remember
in specific locations in a room
with which you are familiar.

To remember presidents:
Place a dollar bill (George
Washington) on the door.
Walk into the room and see
Jefferson reclining on a sofa
and Nixon eating out of the
refrigerator.

For foreign language

vocabulary

Keyword Method - Select the

foreign words you need to
remember, then identify an
English word that sounds like
the foreign one. Now imagine an
image that involves the key
word with the English meaning
of the foreign word.

In Spanish, the word

"ccabina" means phone
booth. Invent an image of a
cab trying to fit in a phone
booth. When you see the
word "cabina", you should
be able to recall this image
and thereby retrieve the
meaning "phone booth."

For remembering
names

Image-Name Technique - invent

a relationship between the name
and the physical characteristics
of the person.

Shirley Temple - her curly

(rhymes with "Shirley") hair
around her temples.

For ordered or
unordered lists

Chaining - Create a story where

each word or idea you have to
remember will cue the next idea
you need to recall.

Napoleon, ear, door,

Germany
Story: Napoleon had his ear
to the door to listen to the
Germans in his beer cellar.

Source: http://www.iss.stthomas.edu/studyguides/memory.htm

5.2.4

Advantages of Using Memorisation

There are several advantages of using memorisation. Among them are:

(a)"

Provide a memory bridge to help you recall information that otherwise is

difficult to remember;

(b)" Involve rearranging or reorganising information, which also helps you

personalise the information and be a more active learner;
(c)"

Add interest to studying by providing you with new ways to work with
information;

(d)" When used properly, they allow you to spend less time retrieving
information from your long-term memory;

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99

(e)"

Help students who are below average in verbal ability who might have
greater difficulty with complex learning strategies; and

(f)"

It is applicable to all age levels.

5.2.5

Instructional and Nurturant

Memorisation Model

Effects

of

the

The memorisation model is aimed at helping learners remember facts or

information effectively. As such, it is crucial for the teacher to provide the
appropriate learning tools and adequate learning opportunities for learners. The
instructional and nurturant effects are as follows:
(a)"

Instructional effects
(i)"

Mastery of facts and ideas the teacher needs to ensure that the
activities are able to help learners gain mastery of facts and ideas.
Activities should be laden with adequate and appropriate information
to enable learners enhance their knowledge base.

(ii)" Tools for mastering information and concepts relevant teachinglearning tools can be employed in the classroom to ensure that the
learners are able to effectively remember and retain information. A
variety of tools catered to the different competency levels of the
learners can help in creating an effective teaching-learning
environment.
(iii)" A sense of intellectual power Teachers can promote positive and
powerful learning sense within the classroom. This can be achieved
through encouraging the learners to be in control of their own mental
activities. The awareness of the learners ability to control and modify
their thought processes can create a sense of intellectual power within
the individual.
(b)" Nurturant effects
(i)"

Self-esteem learners gain self-esteem as they progress through the

activities. Their ability to store and retrieve will certainly boost their
confidence level making them feel more receptive towards the
learning process.

(ii)" Self-understanding The process of retrieving and storing

information is conducted systematically. The process entails a
detailed procedure using various learning tools. The learners become
active learning participants in the process in which the information is

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processed in a meaningful and effective manner. Learners are not

mere rote learners. This learning process encourages meaningful
interaction and associations to the learning items.
(iii)" Self-reliance and independence Once learners gain self-esteem and
able to understand the process of learning, they will eventually
become self-reliant and independent. They will be able to take
responsibility of their learning as they are made more aware of their
mental capacity.

The advance organiser model is useful to structure concepts and teach the
skills of effective reception learning. It enhances learners critical thinking.

The memorisation model aids in increasing the capacity to story and retrieve
information. It allows for creative forms of thinking. It allows learners to be
more meaningful and effective memorisers.

Advance organisers

Meaningful learning

Cognitive structure

Mnemonics

Integrative reconciliation

Progressive differentiation

Link-word-method

Scaffolding

Atherton, J. S. (2005). Teaching and learning: Advance organizers. Retrieved from

http://www.learningandteaching.info/teaching/ advance_organisers.htm
Ausubel, D. (1963). The psychology of meaningful verbal learning. New York,
NY: Grune & Stratton.

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Caverly, D. (1997). Teaching reading in a learning assistance center. In S.

Mioduski & G. Enright (Eds.), Proceedings of the 17th and 18th annual
Winter institutes for learning assistance professional (pp. 27-42). Tucson,
AZ: University Learning Center, University of Arizona.
Hassard, J. (2005). Meaningful learning model. In the art of teaching science.
Retrieved from http://scied.gsu.edu/Hassard/mos/2.10.html
Joyce, B., Weil, M., & Calhoun, E. (2009). Models of teaching. Boston, MA:
Pearson Education.
Mayer, R. E. (1979). Can advance organizers influence meaningful learning?
Review of Educational Research, 49, 371383.
Robinson, D. H. (1998). Graphic organizers as aids to text learning. Reading
Research and Instruction, 37, 85-105
University of Pittsburgh. Advance organizers. Retrieved from
http://www.cidde.pitt.edu/using-advance-organizer