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to superior subsequent memory performance versus more “shallow” encoding, such
as making judgments about a word's font.
Another relevant principle in human learning and memory is that of
transfer-
appropriate processing
: memory performance is enhanced to the extent that mental
processes at encoding and retrieval are similar. This principle suggests that effective
encoding strategies are those that employ processes most closely matching those
that will be used at the time of retrieval. This is borne out in a study by Morris,
Bransford, and Franks (1977). In that study, learners were presented with single
words that were each preceded by an orienting sentence that either induced semantic
processing (e.g., “The—had a silver engine.”
...
“TRAIN”) or phonetic process-
...
ing (e.g., “- rhymes with legal.”
“EAGLE”). Learners responded “yes” or “no”
to each item, either judging whether the word was appropriate in the sentence or
judging whether the word indeed rhymed. Learners were then given either a stan-
dard recognition test for the originally presented words or a recognition test for
words that rhymed with the original words. For the standard recognition test (which
presumably induces more emphasis on the meaning of words), performance was
highest for items that had undergone semantic processing at encoding. However, for
the rhyming recognition test, performance was highest for items that had undergone
phonetic processing at encoding. Thus, performance on each test type was superior
for items that had been processed in a transfer-appropriate way at encoding.
Learners can also be instructed to use various
mnemonic
strategies to enhance
learning (Bellezza, 1996). For example, Roediger (1980) instructed learners to study
word lists using elaborative rehearsal (repeating each word and its meaning to them-
selves multiple times), visual imagery for each word, visual imagery that linked
words, the loci method (imagining each word in a familiar sequential location), or
the peg method (associating each word with a pre-learned sequence of “peg” words,
such as “gun” for position one). On immediate and 24-h delayed tests, learners were
instructed to try to recall words in the same order that they had been studied. The
linked imagery, loci, and peg mnemonics led to greater performance than elabora-
tive rehearsal and individual imagery, in terms of total number of words recalled,
and especially words recalled in their correct order. This demonstrates that learners
can capably employ metacognitive control processes from direct instruction and that
these acts can enhance learning, particularly when such processes are well-suited for
the retrieval task (although the costs of such strategies may be worth considering as
well; e.g., Benjamin & Bjork, 2000).
Improving Control at Encoding via Experience
To what extent can metacognitive control be improved via experience rather than
instructions? Relevant research here has chiefly used multiple study-test cycles to
investigate changes in metacognitive control. Repeated exposure to the conditions
of study and test can lead learners to adopt more effective control strategies, partic-
ularly when they are also assisted in assessing their own performance as a function
of the control processes they implement.
