This is a presentation about information processing and cognitive learning theories.

1. Information processing and
cognitive theories of learning
Module: Educational Psychology
Teacher: Mr. Seddiq Ouboulahcen
Student: Yasmina Zergani and Ikram Ajganiou
ELT & the GM 2020-2021

2. Content
 Definition of information processing
 Stages of information processing
 Memory enhancing factors
 Research on the brain
 Brain biology
 Information processing stages
 Causes of remembering and forgetting
 Theory into practice
 Teaching memory strategies
 Rote learning vs meaningful learning
 Schema theory

3. Information processing theory
is a cognitive theory that
uses computer processing as
a metaphor for the workings
of the human brain.
Initially proposed by George
A. Miller and other American
psychologists in the 1950s,
the theory describes how
people focus on information
and encode it into their
memories.
What is an information processing model?

4. The most important theory
in information processing
is the stage theory
originated by Atkinson
and Shiffrin, which
specifies a sequence of
three stages information
goes through to become
encoded into long-term
memory: sensory memory,
short-term or working
memory, and long-term
memory.
The stages of information
processing

5. Sensory memory involves whatever we take in through
our senses. This kind of memory is exceedingly brief,
only lasting up to 3 seconds. In order for something to
enter sensory memory, the individual has to pay
attention to it. Sensory memory can’t attend to every
piece of information in the environment, so it filters out
what it seems irrelevant and only sends what seems
important to the next stage. The information that’s
most likely to reach the next stage is either interesting
or familiar.
Sensory Memory
Once information reaches short-term memory, which is
also called working memory, it is filtered further. Once
again, this kind of memory doesn’t last long, only
about 15 to 20 seconds. However, if information is
repeated, which is referred to as maintenance
rehearsal, it can be stored for up to 20 minutes. As
observed by Miller, working memory’s capacity is
limited so it can only process a certain number of
pieces of information at a time. How many pieces is
not agreed on, although many still point to Miller to
identify the number as five to nine.
Short-Term Memory / Working Memory
Although short-term memory has a limited capacity, the
capacity of long-term memory is thought to be limitless.
Several different types of information are encoded and
organized in long-term memory: declarative information,
which is information that can be discussed such as
facts, concepts, and ideas (semantic memory) and
personal experiences (episodic memory); procedural
information, which is information about how to do
Long-Term Memory

6. Factors that enhance long-term
memory
**The degree to
which students had
learned the
material in the first
place. **It is
interesting to note
that the effects of
ability on retention
are unclear.
**Long-term retention of information
that is learned in school varies a
great deal according to the type of
information. For example, concepts
are retained much longer than
names.
**In general, retention drops rapidly
in the first few weeks after
instruction but then levels off.
Whatever students have retained
about 12 to 24 weeks after
instruction, they may retain forever.
**Higher-ability students score
better at the end of a course
but often lose the same
percentage of what they had
learned as lower-ability
students do.
**Instructional strategies that
actively involve students in
lessons contribute to long
term retention.
**For example, Mackenzie and White
(1982) contrasted students in 8 and 9
grades learning geography under 3
conditions: traditional classroom
instruction, traditional instruction plus
field work, and traditional instruction
plus fieldwork plus active processing
of information involved in field work.
12 weeks later (after summer
vacation), the active processing group
had lost only 10% of the information,

7. Other
information-
processing
models
01
Craik and Lockhart’s Level of Processing Model
Their levels of processing theory states that
the ability to access information in long-term
memory will be affected by how much it
was elaborated upon. Elaboration is the
process of making information meaningful so
it is more likely to be remembered.
People process information with different
levels of elaboration that will make the
information more or less likely to be
retrieved later. Craik and Lockhart specified
a continuum of elaboration that starts with
perception, continues through attention and
labeling, and ends at meaning.
Regardless of the level of elaboration, all
information is likely to be stored in long-
term memory, but higher levels of
elaboration make it more likely that the
information will be able to be retrieved.
In other words, we can recall far less

8. Other
information-
processing
models
02
Parallel-Distributed Processing Model and
Connectionist Model
The parallel-distributed processing model
and connectionist model contrast to the
linear three-step process specified by
the stage theory. The parallel-distributed
processing model was a precursor to
connectionism that proposed that
information is processed by multiple
parts of the memory system at the same
time.
This was extended by Rumelhart and
McClelland’s connectionist model in 1986,
which said that information is stored in
various locations throughout the brain
that is connected through a network.
Information that has more connections
will be easier for an individual to
retrieve.

9. The brain is a wondrous thing. It
transforms letters, numbers, and
images into meaningful data that
governs every aspect of our lives.
Neural pathways spark and new
ideas meet with the old to form
complex schematic structures. But
one of the most miraculous tasks it
tackles is learning.
As professionals, we must
understand how information
processing takes place in order to
create effective and optimal learning
experiences.
Research on the brain

10. Neural connections in children's
brains develop rapidly from birth
through infancy.
Up to the age of 18 months, infants generate
enormous numbers of neurons and
connections between neurons. After that
point, they begin to lose them.
What is happening is that the brain sloughs
off connections that are not being used, so
that the remaining connections are efficient
and well organized.
This process is strongly affected by the
environment in which the child lives, and
continues through early childhood.

11. **The brain consists of many
different structures, and the
cortex encases all of them.
The cortex is the outermost
shell of the brain that takes
care of complex thinking
abilities. For example, memory,
language, spatial awareness,
and even personality traits.
The inner regions of the brain
control the most primitive
aspects of human nature,
such as our base impulses,
fears, emotions, and our
subconscious. The brain also
houses a "subcortex", which
connects directly to the cortex.
As such, it's able to transmit
and process information.
Brain Biology
**The two hemispheres of the
brain have somewhat different
functions; the left hemisphere
is more involved in language,
while the right is more
involved in spatial and
nonverbal information.

12. Information Processing Stages
 Stage 3: Output
 Stage 2: Storage
 Stage 1: Input
Our brains store the
information for later
use.
It also adds it to our
mental schema and
encodes it. If the
information is not
reinforced, the brain
may simply forget
it over time.
The brain decides what
it's going to do with the
information and how it
will react to the stimulus.
For example, after
reading the passage, the
individual uses the
information they learned
to overcome a challenge.
The brain is exposed
to a stimuli, at which
point it analyzes and
evaluates the
information. For
example, the online
learner reads a
passage and
determines whether it's
worth remembering.

13. What causes people to remember or forget?
Interference
Retroactive
interference
(retro=backward)
Proactive
interference
(pro=forward)
**Occurs when you forget a
previously learnt task due to
the learning of a new task. In
other words, later learning
interferes with earlier learning
- where new memories
disrupt old memories.
**Occurs when you cannot
learn a new task because of
an old task that had been
learnt. When what we
already know interferes with
what we are currently
**Interference is an explanation for
forgetting in long term memory,
which states that forgetting occurs
because memories interfere with
and disrupt one another, in other
words forgetting occurs because of
interference from other memories
(Baddeley, 1999).
**This idea suggests that
information in long term memory
may become confused or
combined with other information
during encoding thus distorting or
disrupting memories.

14. **Proactive and retroactive
Interference is thought to be
more likely to occur where the
memories are similar, for
example: confusing old and
new telephone numbers.
Chandler (1989) stated that
students who study similar
subjects at the same time
often experience interference.
**Previous learning can
sometimes interfere with new
learning (e.g., difficulties we
have with foreign currency
when travelling abroad).
Also new learning can
sometimes cause confusion
with previous learning. (Starting
French may affect our memory
of previously learned Spanish
vocabulary).

15. 1st way:
Not teaching similar and confusing
concepts too closely in time.
For example, students should be
completely able to recognize the
letter b before the letter d is
introduced. If these letters are
introduced at close to the same time,
learning of one may inhibit learning
of the other. When the new letter is
introduced, the teacher must carefully
point out the differences between b
and d, and students must practice
discriminating between the two until
they can unerringly say which is
2nd way:
Use different methods to teach
similar concepts.
For instance, in social studies a
teacher might teach about
Spain by using lectures and
discussion, about France by
using group projects, and about
Italy by sing films. This would
help students avoid confusing
Reducing retroactive inhibition
Theory into practice

16. Reducing proactive inhibition
Facilitation
It should also be noted that learning one
thing can often help a person learn
similar information.
For example, Spanish first may help an
English speaking student later learn
Italian, a similar language.
Primacy and Recency Effects
One of the oldest findings in educational
psychology
is that when people are given a list of words
to learn and then tested immediately
afterward, they tend to learn the first few and
last few items much better than those
in the middle of the list.
The tendency to learn the first things
presented is called
the primacy effect; the tendency to learn the
last things is called the recency effect.

17. How can memory strategies be
taught?
In many studies psychologists have
examined verbal learning, or how students
learn verbal materials, in laboratory settings
(Raaijmakers & Shiffrin, 1992).
For example, students might be asked to
learn lists of words or nonsense syllables.
Students often learn things as facts before
they understand them as concepts or skills.
For instance, they may learn the formula for
the volume of a cylinder as an arbitrary fact
long before they understand why the
formula is what it is.
There are 3 types of verbal learning tasks
that are typically seen in the classroom: the
Verbal Learning

18. Involves learning to
respond with one member
of a pair when given the
other member of the pair.
Usually there is a list of
pairs to be memorized. In
typical experiments, the
pairs are arbitrary. For
example, learning the
states' capitals, the dates
of Civil War battles, the
addition and multiplication
tables.
Paired-associate learning tasks
Involves learning a list of
terms in a particular order.
Memorization of the notes
on the musical staff,
poetry and songs are
serial learning tasks.
Serial learning tasks occur
less often in classroom
instruction than paired-
associate tasks do.
Serial learning tasks
Involve memorizing a list, but
not in a special order.
Recalling the names of the 50
states, types of reinforcements,
kinds of poetic feet, and the
organ systems in the body are
examples of free-recall tasks
and the organ systems in the
body are examples of free-
recall tasks.
Free-recall learning tasks

19. Rote vs. Meaningful
learning
WHAT IS ROTE LEARNING?
Rote learning is the
memorization of information
based on repetition. Examples of
rote learning include memorizing
the alphabet, numbers, and
multiplication tables. Some
consider rote learning to be a
necessary step in learning
certain subjects.
Memorization is not the most
effective way to learn, but it’s a
method many students and
teachers still use.
A common rote learning
WHAT IS MEANINGFUL LEARNING?
Meaningful learning involves
understanding how all the pieces
of an entire concept fit together.
The knowledge gained through
meaningful learning applies to
new learning situations. This type
of learning stays with students for
life.
Meaningful learning is active,
constructive, and long-lasting, but
most importantly, it allows
students to be fully engaged in
the learning process.
What makes information
meaningful?

20. Two important goals of all
types of learning include
retention and transfer.
• “Retention” is the ability to
remember the material at
a later time.
• “Transfer” is the ability to
use prior knowledge to
solve new problems.
Students achieve meaningful
learning when both of these
goals are fulfilled.
Experts emphasize the importance of
deep understanding over the recalling
of facts.
Students who learn with meaningful
learning are able to problem solve
better than those who learn by rote.
Meaningful learning teaches students
important cognitive skills they will use
throughout their life.
Cognitive skills are what students
use to evaluate, analyze, remember
and make comparisons.
In the long run, meaningful learning
is the most effective way for students
to engage in learning.

21. Schema theory
The term schema is nowadays often used
even outside cognitive psychology and
refers to a mental framework human use
to represent and organize remembered
information. Schemata, “the building blocks
of cognition”, present our personal
simplified view over reality derived from
our experience and prior knowledge, they
enable us to recall, modify our behavior,
concentrate attention on key information, or
try to predict most likely outcomes of
events.
Schema theory emphasizes importance of
general knowledge and concepts that will
help forming schemata.
In educational process the task of teachers
would be to help learners to develop new
schemata and establish connections
between them. Also, due to the importance
of prior knowledge, teachers should make
sure that students have it.
In other words, the schemata a person
already possesses are a principal

22. Schemata also expand and change in time,
due to acquisition of new information, but
deeply installed schemata are inert and slow
in changing.
This could provide an explanation to why
some people live with incorrect or
inconsistent beliefs rather than changing
them. When new information is retrieved, if
possible, it will be assimilated into existing or
related schemata will be
changed/accommodated in order to integrate
the new information.
For example: during schooling process a child
learns about mammals and develops
corresponding schema. When a child hears
that a porpoise is a mammal as well, it first
tries to fit it into the mammals schema: it's
warm-blooded, air-breathing, is born with hair

23. • Cognition refers to the mental processes
involved in gaining knowledge and
comprehension. By cognition, we are usually
referring to everything that is related to
knowledge. In other words, the accumulation of
information that we have acquired through
learning or experience.
• The cognitive processes include attention,
memory, perception , language, thought,
learning.
• The cognitive processes can happen naturally
or artificially, consciously or unconsciously, but
usually happen fast.
What is cognition?

24. What is metacognition?
• Metacognition refers to “thinking about thinking” and
was introduced as a concept by John Flavell, who is
typically seen as a founding scholar of the field. Flavell
said that metacognition is the knowledge you have of
your own cognitive processes (your thinking).
• Metacognition is often considered to have two
dimensions:
 Metacognitive knowledge refers to what learners know
about learning.
 Metacognitive regulation refers to what learners do
about learning. It describes how learners monitor and
control their cognitive processes.

25. Metacognition describes the processes involved when
learners plan, monitor, evaluate and make changes to
their own learning behaviours.

27. How do metacognitive skills help students to
learn?
• Teaching metacognitive strategies to students can lead to a marked
improvement in their achievement.
• Metacognition helps students to become independent learners.
• Learners who use metacognitive strategies are likely to be able to
achieve more. Research shows that improving a learner’s
metacognitive practices may compensate for any cognitive limitations
they have.
• Students can learn to assess their own understanding, figure out how
much time they will need to study something, choosing an effective
plan to study or to solve learning problems.
• Metacognition helps students to learn by:
 Thinking about their thinking.
 Controlling their own thinking processes.

28. What Study strategies help students learn?
Students use different study strategies:
• Note taking :
Students take notes both in reading and in
learning from lectures. It can be effective when it
is used to identify the main ideas of a complex
conceptual material. Also, when students state
the main ideas in different ways. By doing this ,
the students improve their mental processing of
the information.
• Underlining:
It is commonly used by students, but it is not
effective. According to researchers, this strategy
requires a higher level of processing. Students
fail to decide what to underline.

29. • Summarizing:
Student write brief statements that shows the main
ideas of the information being read. After reading
each paragraph, students need to summarize the
main ideas in one sentence. So, this strategy will
be more effective.
• Writing to learn:
This strategy encourages the students to write the
content while they are learning. It helps them to
understand and remember at the same time.
• Outlining and mapping:
Outlining presents the main ideas in a hierarchical
format. Mapping shows the main ideas and the
connections between them.

31. • The PQ4R method:
It involves students in the process of
learning by providing meaningful organization
of information. The PQ4R method includes
these six steps: preview, question, read,
reflect, recite, and review

32. How do cognitive
teaching strategies
help students
learn ?
• Making learning relevant and activating prior
knowledge:
Cognitive skills promote long term learning as it
allows you to connect previous knowledge with
new materials. It helps you merge old and new
information and apply both effectively. So, it
encourages continuous learning.
• Advance organizer: ( David Ausubel )
The activities and techniques that orient students
to the material before reading or class
presentation. Before reading a passage about
Buddhism, students were given an advance
organizer comparing Buddhism to Christianity.
This strategy helps students to increase their
understanding of a certain material and assist
them in incorporating the new information.
• Analogies:
This strategy helps students to compare new
information to information students already knew.

33. • Elaboration:
The process of thinking about material to be
learned in a way that connects the material to
information or ideas that are already in the
learners’ mind.
• Organizing Information:
The teacher needs to organize his or her material
while teaching complex concepts. Material that is
well organized is much easier to learn and
remember than material that is poorly organized.
• Questioning techniques:
This strategy encourages the students to ask
questions from time to time to assess their own
understanding of what the text or teacher is
saying.
• Conceptual models:
They are used to comprehend complex topics and
show how elements relate to each other.
How do cognitive
teaching
strategies help
students learn ?

34. References
• Robert E. Slavin – Educational Psychology_ Theory and
Practice (8th Edition)-Allyn & Bacon (2005)
• Information Processing Basics: How The Brain Processes
Information. (2016). eLearning Industry.
• learning-theories.org

35. Your attention is
highly appreciated !