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Consolidation is the process whereby a brain state in active or working memory is stored in long-term memory. This process modifies synapses on the dendrites of neurones. After retrieval of the memory, a similar process, called reconsolidation occurs whereby the old memory is altered and replaced by the new memory. Multiple retrievals and reconsolidations may be needed to build an accurate chunk. It seems we are not prompted to reconsolidate
Both consolidation and reconsolidation happen during sleep, so we can’t possibly know what a learner has learned during a lesson. We must wait for at least one sleep to find out what has become learning and what has not. It seems that if recall is too easy reconsolidation won’t happen at all or make a perceivable so there will be no change in the duration of the recall-ability from long term memory. This fits with Bjork’s desirable difficulties. It seems that by its very definition reconsolidation can’t happen at the end of the lesson where the skill is taught, because the learner hasn’t had a sleep so hasn’t even consolidated the learning. |
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Contrary to our expectations, feedback is better given after one sleep, than directly after an error. It seems that if we give feedback on the day of the error, we may not be as effectively triggering reconsolidation - see (2) above - that is we are not as effectively triggering the brain to change chunks in long-term memory. On the other hand, if we leave feedback for too many days, then feedback is not as effective as it could be either, because forgetting has further deteriorated the learning our feedback is trying to fix.
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I wish I could say that is why timely practice expects the teacher to assess assignments between one lesson and the next, so that feedback is delayed by at least one sleep. However the main reasons for this fundamental decision are:
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When we ask questions like this we help nudge the learner to replace the external scaffolding of lessons with their own internal scaffolding - i.e. a better/bigger/more complete chunk in long term memory. It is often clear, that that is what we are doing e.g. as as soon as we say “what diagram”, we see the “aha” look and the learner wants us to go away and leave them to get on, they now know what they are doing. The diagram, often already has a chunk attached to it, in the learner’s long term memory.
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We have to accept that selecting best learned later and hoping that “in class teaching and practice” in the next spiral of the curriculum, is unlikely to solve the problem: the learner could answer practice questions in the lesson they were taught, but can’t recall enough the next lesson. It is clear that the problem is not - being unable to apply the process - rather the problem is being unable to recall to recall the process.
Hence, we are unlikely to fix the recall problem, with another lesson - whether the lesson is next term or next year - when we tell the learner what to do.
We are however, much more likely to fix the recall problem, by a few quick feedback-dialogue sessions, in the next few lessons, especially if we see what the learner can already recall and then help them add a bit more to the process or join existing processes together.
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