Reports three experiments demonstrating that recall for words increases with deeper levels of processing and with longer rehearsal intervals. Asserts that there is no interaction between those strategies. (PMJ)

Summarizes research findings related to brain maturation during the adolescent years and highlights implications for the middle level educator, focusing on the types of classroom activities most compatible with attention and memory. Examines possible gender differences in how adolescents learn, the effects of stress on the brain, and implications…

The patient's body is an image that medical students and residents use to process information. The classic use of images using the patient is qualitative and personal. The contemporary use of images is quantitative and impersonal. The contemporary use of imaging includes radiographic, nuclear, scintigraphic, and nuclear magnetic resonance…

Feedback effectiveness and efficiency were studied using 120 college students practicing 40 difficult vocabulary items in 4 experiments. The significant impact of immediate feedback was seen in immediate and delayed posttests. Conditional probability of feedback as a corrective function is discussed via a limited model of general working memory.…

Presents model of instructional strategy planning that links specific cognitive learning and thinking processes with specific computer-based instructional strategies. Topics discussed include memory systems; types of knowledge; drill and practice; tutorials; task-oriented simulations; problem-oriented simulations; and self directed experiences.…

Investigated effects of object reinstatement on event recall by 6- and 9-year olds'. Subjects were interviewed either 10 days and again 10 weeks after an event, or only 10 weeks after an event. Interviewing included free recall, prompts, and questions. Found that age, delay, and object reinstatement all affected amount and accuracy of recall. (JW)

Describes the biological basis of learning and individuality. Presents an overview of recent discoveries that suggest learning engages a simple set of rules that modify the strength of connection between neurons in the brain. The changes are cited as playing an important role in making each individual unique. (MCO)

Explored the relationship between three personality traits in older adults and improvement in face-name recall after three types of intervention. Results showed improvement in recall after intervention; a correlation between the openness trait and recall with all interventions; and a correlation between the fantasy subfactor trait and recall with…

A study involving 11 boys (ages 6-12) with high-functioning autism and 11 boys with moderate-functioning autism examined memory strategy use on a serial recall task and a recall readiness task. Significant spontaneous strategy use was found on both tasks, particularly among the high-functioning group, although still lower than typical controls.…

Examined how elementary school students remember what they learn and how they learn in science and social studies. Found that students used long-term working memory for sorting, interpreting, and integrating representations of classroom experiences as they acquired knowledge and skills. Recollection 12 months later replaced details with inferences…

Summarizes the latest key brain research findings and invites educators to incorporate the biology of learning into teaching practices. Curriculum should be based on overarching concepts that help students understand and predict what is going on around them at school and in their communities. (PVD)

A team of teachers, scientists, and high school students at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston has developed activities to teach concepts in learning through an inquiry-based laboratory method. The Learning Education and Research Network (LEARN) activities were field tested at the Society for Neuroscience Conference, in the…

Stress facilitates memory formation, but only when the stressor is closely linked to the learning context. These effects are, at least in part, mediated by corticosteroid hormones. Here we demonstrate that corticosterone rapidly facilitates synaptic potentiation in the mouse hippocampal CA1 area when high levels of the hormone and high-frequency…

Understanding the function of the distinct amygdaloid nuclei in learning comprises a major challenge. In the two studies described herein, we used c-Fos immunolabeling to compare the engagement of various nuclei of the amygdala in appetitive and aversive instrumental training procedures. In the first experiment, rats that had already acquired a…

Cannabinoid receptors type 1 (CB1) play a central role in both short-term and long-term extinction of auditory-cued fear memory. The molecular mechanisms underlying this function remain to be clarified. Several studies indicated extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERKs), the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase with its downstream effector AKT, and…