Working Memory and Mental Imagery

• Mental imagery training enhances comprehension and is easy to teach
• Pronouns provide cohesion and coherence for text comprehension

I have just returned from recreation leave and read an interesting article entitled 'Effect of imagery training on children's comprehension of pronouns' by Francey and Cain, two researchers from Lancaster University, United Kingdom.  The researchers were investigating children with good and poor listening comprehension, and their ability to identify the antecedents of personal pronouns in individual sentences and also to select the most appropriate pronoun in a story close activity.

Normally, as they read,  good comprehenders will construct an integrated situation model of the perceived sentence and story meanings as a cohesive and coherent mental representation. What usually underpins this process is the resolution of pronouns with their antecedents in the same sentence or previous sentences. Pronouns such as 'he', 'she', 'they' or 'it' are strategic in integrating information within and between sentences. This, however, may require the reader to use extra mental resources to make inferences particularly in situations where 'he' refers to one of two protagonists in the previous sentence. Poor comprehenders often have considerable difficulty with this process and consequently have difficulty with text integration and comprehension of the text discourse.

Good readers tend to generate mental imagery as they read, which benefits their text recall and extends their capacity to hold information while processing text during reading. Poor readers, on the other hand, seldom generate mental imagery while reading. However, in my own research I have found that imagery training is relatively easy and enjoyable for struggling readers. It is assumed that by generating mental imagery during reading the reader is enabled to carry over complex ideas embedded within an image while, for example, decoding, connecting text propositions, making inferences across text and linking ideas to the reader's background  experiences. Thus, mental imagery enhances working memory efficiency by utilising the visual mode of working memory to enhance the ability of the poor comprehender to retain detailed information.

The research findings confirm the notion that poor comprehenders have difficulties with language comprehension apart from decoding. Most poor comprehenders have good decoding but have poor language comprehension and this can be evidenced in the fact that they have significantly more difficulty with pronoun resolution. The research demonstrates that minimal mental imagery training can improve the reading comprehension performance of students with poor comprehension. Another finding is that there is strong evidence to support the notion that pronouns play a crucial role in comprehension and the construction of a cohesive and coherent understanding of text ideas. The findings of this study also give some support for Paivio's (1991) Dual Coading theory of cognition.

Francey, G., Cain, K. (2015). Effect of imagery training on children’s comprehension of pronouns. Journal of Educational Research, 108 (1) p. 1 – 9.

Paivio, A. (1986). Mental representations: A dual-coding approach. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.

Spelling - Recalling/Re-visualizing - Pt 2

In my last blog I mentioned that spelling is more consistent visually than it is by sound. The mistake that most people make when they teach spelling is to think that you need to convert spelling to sound before you can bring the correct spelling of a word to mind. You might think that, "I just can't recall how to spell that word!" This sounds like a fair enough statement when thinking about the spelling of a word. But is it?

The notion of recall comes from Aristotle's conception of how memory functions. He proposed that when one remembers one recalls or re-says a list of associated ideas, concepts or separate items. In other words, when you recall a particular item in memory other items, such as letters in a word, are recalled one after the other in a linear or time ordered sequence.  Of course, the sounds of words are important and you endeavour to recall the sequence of letter sounds and associate each of these sounds with the corresponding graphic representation. Thus, to recall a spelling word you recall the sound units and link these to their correct letter shapes. For many children this is easy and very efficient - they are good spellers. However, not all children find this process easy, particularly learners that have a primarily visual mode of learning.

Not only is the visual mode of spelling easier for some it is much more consistent (see my previous blog).  Around the same time that Aristotle formulated his ideas about memory Plato had quite a different idea, he proposed that memory was like a wax tablet. He depicted memory as sketches in the mind's eye that could be inscribed and changed as new information came to light. When people say, "I see what you mean." they are attributing (or ascribing) this notion of visualisation of information in memory. This encoding works quite differently - to memorise a word is to visualise that word in the mind's eye. While attempting to spell a word one can re-envision  the whole word as an image. In other words one can use one's imagination to access the memory of the word. The two systems can complement each other: Alan Paivio's Dual Coding theory of cognition proposes that  memory functions more efficient when the visual and verbal systems are combined or linked.

One method that has worked well for children that I have worked with is to use slightly different spellings to write the word three times. Each time direct the child to carefully look at the word and to think about whether or not it looks right. Ask, "What part of the word does not look right? Can you think of other ways to write this part of the word? Write the word again. Now circle the one that looks right." Often this takes a few practises with some guidance. Many times the child will recognise the correct spelling and can circle the one that looks right. From this, one would assume that the spelling has been correctly encoded in long-term memory but the usual retrieval mechanism has not worked well for the child.

It may also be helpful to combine this approach with the verbal strategy of breaking the word into syllables, spelling each syllable and then viewing the word to see if it looks right. Usually one of the syllables does not look right. The child should be asked to identify which syllable is the odd one out and to write the word again with an alternative graphic representation of the same syllable.

Visualization and Comprehension Pt 9

Oral  vocabulary is one of the most important contributors to children's reading, academic development, and progress through school. It is a significant indicator of success at school. However, it has been estimated that the size off children's receptive flexibility can vary quite considerably. Children with poorer vocabularies may have as many as 4000 fewer words in their mental lexicon than children starting school from homes where parents regularly interact with their children and provide rich language experiences. As a result, children entering school with larger vocabularies tend to have less problems with reading, read more, and learn more new vocabulary through their extensive reading experiences. In contrast, children who have poorer vocabularies tend to have more difficulty learning to read, read less, and fall behind their more successful classmates in acquiring new words.

Produced using 'Wordle'

At school good readers learn a vast amount of new vocabulary incidentally as they read. They are able to use the context to help them decipher new meanings for new words and add them to their mental lexicons as they read. However, many children struggle with reading and this word learning process becomes quite difficult for them. In response to this, it is necessary for some direct teaching of  vocabulary in the classroom.

I have been working on an article for a professional journal about teaching vocabulary in the classroom.     While doing this I came across an article  by Mark Sadoski called "A dual coding view of vocabulary learning" (see below). This was very timely as it gave some insights on how 'Dual Coding' theory can contribute to the teaching of vocabulary (as well as fitting neatly into this blog series).

According to Sadoski, words are verbal labels for concepts, their meanings and even pronunciations  are determined by their connections to a variety of other words. However some words are easier to learn than others. For example, words like 'sofa', are more concrete and are generally easier to imagine than words that those that are more abstract,  such as the word 'justice'. This notion supports dual coding theory because it demonstrates that people use different coding systems to encode the words. Concrete words tend to be associated with imagery while abstract words depend primarily on the web of verbal associations for their meaning.

One particularly effective direct teaching method for learning new vocabulary is called the keyword method. This requires learners to form an interactive mental image of the definition of the new word together with a familiar concrete word that shares a similar acoustic element. In the article Sadoski uses the example of the word 'potable', which means suitable for drinking. 'Pot' is the keyword that forms part of a word potable and can be visualised as the pot containing water.  Thus, visual and  acoustic  word associations are linked to word symbols, meanings and context. Word roots, suffixes and prefixes can also used in conjunction with the key word method to enhance this learning experience.

Sadoski, M. (2005). A dual coding view of vocabulary learning. Reading and Writing Quarterly, 21, 221-238.

Visualization and Reading Comprehension Pt 6

Manipulating Objects and Figures to Visualize a Narrative.

When readers manipulate objects after reading a story it usually results in improved mental imagery and reading comprehension outcomes. Children are more able to retain imagined pictures of story events after they have used object manipulations even after several days. Object manipulation actively links read text information to the reader’s own background experiences and provides an effective memory strategy that enhances comprehension and recall of story ideas and events. 

After reading a story children can be given plastic figures and props such as trees, fences, and houses  to simulate and interpret the events of a story that they have enjoyed. In other words, a story character's world will become more concrete and comprehensible when objects are used in conjunction with narratives that children have read or heard. Having children manipulate objects after reading to represent characters and their actions will improve their understanding because it makes the visualising of story content more concrete and imaginable. 

The process is just as important as the product. When children cooperatively simulate story events with objects and describe the actions of figures it enables the linking of words and ideas to objects. It also  enables them to more easily visualise story ideas and relationships. Rich discussion can enhance the vividness of mental imagery and enables readers to project their own thoughts and feelings in a way that seems quite natural. The manipulating of objects in space and the rich talk that accompanies these actions should not be thought of as just a way to develop a scene or an end product but should be part of this complex learning process.

A model of an Aboriginal Dreamtime story (Legend)

10 other ideas using manipulatives:

1. Make a diorama
2. Use a cardboard theatre with cardboard figures to develop a play
3. Use a puppet theatre with puppets and props
4. Use plasticine to make figures and scenes
5. Buy a set of plastic figures and objects to make the scenes
6. Use a felt board and cut out felt figures to create a scene
7. Dress-up and act out the scene
8. Make figures and object with clay or play dough
9. Paint a series of pictures to illustrate the story
10. Draw a cartoon with captions and speech bubbles

Visualising and Reading Comprehension Pt3

I had a look at a video presentation by Nancy Bell at
http://www.lindamoodbell.com/video.aspx and I would recommend that everyone interested in reading comprehension view this excellent video presentation.

In this video she introduces her audience to the Dual Coding Theory which is the theoretical foundation for her work in reading comprehension. It also gives the viewer a good understanding of why some children have difficulties with reading comprehension.

If you have a good theoretical understanding of reading comprehension based on an understanding of the cognitive processing then it should give consistency and be firm foundation for good teaching of reading.

Visualizing and Reading Comprehension Pt1

This is the first part in a 12 part series on using a visualising strategies to develop reading comprehension. 

When readers read and comprehend written text and they develop what is sometimes referred to as a situation model. A situation model uses information that the reader brings to the task of reading and combines this with the new text-based information to build comprehension. Thus, readers construct an interpretation (or situation model) of what they are reading by combining information from their background knowledge together with information extracted from the print. The new information that is processed in working memory may be visual, verbal, or a combination of both. The two modes if information are in a reciprocal relationship, for example, if one thinks of a word one can form a picture of that word and if one imagines a picture a number of associated words will be evoked. This means that when the two modes are linked more items can be chunked together and stored in working memory.

It is the linking of words with pictures that will enable a more efficient use of working memory resulting in better reading comprehension. The two modes complement one another but function quite differently, for example, the verbal system is linear and sequential. To remember a number of words or numbers a person needs to repeatedly rehearse them in the order in which they were encoded so that the impressions are maintained in working memory. In contrast, visual memory temporarily stores all their items in the form of a holistic image in which the items are placed in a spatial relationship to one another. Within this image individual items can be accessed by zooming in or out or in different directions. When the representations are connected comprehension will be enhanced because information can be more easily accessed and retrieved.

If one is able to describe an object in detail the better will be the associated mental image because it holds more information and has more links to verbal information. One way to develop the descriptive words is to place an unseen object in a bag and have the learner described the object so that the listener can guess what the object is. Children often have a great deal of difficulty finding the best words to use to describe the unseen object. Most children need to be shown how to describe an object. For example, by using words that are related by; size such as large or huge, or by texture such as rough or smooth.

Another fun way to develop language is to use the game, " Guess Who'.  In this game the learner  has two think of words to fit into, "Does  your person have...? This is a simple type of language game and a good way to introduce some basic vocabulary.

In the next blog I will be discussing the development of language skills using other types of barrier games.