WORKING MEMORY

How Gemm Improves Retention and Recall

Working memory is the short-duration, limited-capacity memory system that simultaneously stores and manipulates information. It is used all day every day to follow the drift of a conversation or instructions, and in reading comprehension.

Working memory is a background, harder to detect cause of learning and reading comprehension difficulties for many of our students. Limits in working memory are important because working memory is the mental process of holding information in a short-term, readily accessible, easily manipulated form where it can be combined, rearranged and stored more productively.

Symptoms of Working Memory Difficulty

Symptoms of a working memory issue include:

• A need to constantly read and re-read text
  
• Difficulty following multi-step directions
  
• Difficulty staying engaged in class
  
• Test anxiety, especially on multiple choice tests
  
• Needs more time and repetition
  
• Inconsistent performance
  
• Lack of focus and attention deficit disorders

Scientists now know that working memory is one of the most under-rated causes of learning under-performance. Also, working memory is closely related to attention because if an individual cannot hold information as it is coming at them, it is harder to stay engaged. These children tend to be more easily distracted and are often diagnosed as having an attention deficit or ADD.

How Gemm Helps Working Memory and Retention

We have two programs that directly address working memory and longer term memory issues:

Fast ForWord software works on language processing related memory deficits, needed in daily life to follow instruction and in reading.

BrainWare Safari addresses visual working memory, short and longer term memory, sequential and spatial memory issues.

Students with any kind of processing deficits, however minor, typically need working memory training also. If the quality of visual or auditory input is poor or it is coming at a child too fast to process in real time, much will be missed and daily opportunities to exercise and expand working memory capacity is lost. And so working memory skills are most often under-developed.

Our programs assume this to be the case and so incorporate a number of powerful exercises that develop working working memory, building capacity in tiny incremental steps. We also build visual and auditory processing skills so that more information and can be captured more accurately and completely in real time -- and so working memory is exercised more fully in daily life. Many children with working memory difficulties also have ADD or attention difficulties, another target of our individualized program if merited.

Our primary learning tool, Fast ForWord software, is adaptive enabling us to develop an individualized program to provide as much working memory training as your child needs.
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Memory Gains From Our Program

We do not treat working memory in isolation. This is because it is almost never an isolated problem, but rather an important weakness contributing to larger language, learning and reading issues. Some of the gains though that we know come from the working memory exercises include:

Better grades and test scores. The improved ability to retain the question while scanning multiple choice answers is a major source of better grades, seen most vividly in the SAT point gains of our high school students.

Improved reading comprehension. Improved working memory helps retention of material while reading and cuts down on the need to read and re-read text.

Improved focus and attention stamina. Retaining more of what a teacher says makes it more interesting and so easier to stay engaged.

Able to follow instructions and directions. If you cannot hold more than 1-2 pieces of information at a time, every-day life is challenging, especially for younger once where so much of what they learn comes through spoken language. Our program's working memory exercises work directly on this skill and generally it is one of the earliest changes parents report to us, an ability to follow their direction.