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How we define and measure intelligence has direct impact on adult education because much of traditional measures focus on declarative memory or the conscious awareness of facts and knowledge but does not account for the vast implicit memory stores that adult learners possess.  The “non-declarative memory” of various experiences can be used to teach adult learns about abstract concepts and theories by engaging activities that connect new material to existing experiences.    For example the difference in the concepts of implicit memory and conscious memory can be introduced by connecting it to the activity of driving.  Most adult learners drive from work to their homes without thinking about, they engage procedural memory, but if asked to give explicit detailed directions to someone else, including exact names of streets and exactly how many miles before the next turn, many would have some difficulty directly engaging their declarative memory for such a routine activity.  Luckily we have the Internet so the need for such detailed declarative memory is minimal but the example would directly engage an activity many adult learners can relate to and can enhance the learning process of new and unfamiliar information.

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An example of an activity I was recently involved in that draws on non-declarative memory is the art of knitting. I wanted to learn to knit and I had a friend who was a professional at knitting. She could knit without using a pattern. She spent several months teaching me basic knitting skills by providing me with a basic pattern to follow to begin with. Each week, with her assistance, I built upon that basic pattern until I had basic skill down pat. I am now able to complete some knitting projects by memory and only need a pattern for more complex projects. With continued practice, any skill can become part of one’s declarative memory.

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Interestingly, I am currently scoping out a training session on self-awareness and empathy. Empathy and our ability to connect emotionally with others is often a non-declarative memory process, in that we respond instinctively, just like Jen's ice skating abilities or Kristianne's recipe completion. (Throw in a bunch of cognitive bias and its a whole big mess).

The goal of my training is to reveal the act of empathy and step learners through a framework to deepen their capability for empathy. Right now the training is very loose, but my initial approach will be to write two scenarios of a similar circumstance - say a man stealing a piece of bread. One scenario does not provide a deep back story around the man other than he walked up and stole the bread, while the second scenario describes the man's context demanding that he steal the bread. (maybe something like his son is very sick at home and the family just used their last coin to buy his medicine and unfortunately the medicine requires food to be effective, but since they have no more money).

Anyway, I plan on splitting the learners into two groups and have each group read one of the two scenarios and then decide what the man's punishment should be. Discussion will ensure around why one group was more lenient and the other more strict. The point being, our capacity for empathy - and our initial intuitive employment of this skill disregards a scenario's context and the amount the information available at our disposal. The revised framework will guide learners to first ask, what do I know about this individual? What information do I lack regarding this circumstance?  I'll then run them though practice scenarios to strengthen these new neuronal pathways and provide job aids to remind them to apply declarative steps to a non-declarative process.

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@Kristianne. Check this out...

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Exact Instructions Challenge - THIS is why my kids hate me. | Josh Darnit

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One possible way to draw on an adult's non-declarative memory to help with declarative memory could be by having the person write down a recipe that they use frequently to the point where they aren't even conscious of what they are doing sometimes, and have them relate something to each of those steps. For me a possible example could be a macaroni recipe that I make with little thought and I could connect that to the steps I would need to take in order to change the oil in my car.

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Based on what we've read this week, I believe non-declarative memory becomes more habitual with age, especially if it is something we continue to do throughout our lives.  Much like the example of juggling in the text, the more we perform any skill, the more instinctively we do so, and we can build additional levels of skill on top of the foundational skill.  An example of a classroom activity might be conducting internet research.  For the most part, if you tell a student to research a concept, they know to go to Google and type into the search box in order to obtain the information.  By adding parameters to the search, students can learn to narrow their results from the hundreds of thousands of items that show up.  Continued use of research techniques help internalize the skill to the point where students naturally isolate search terms to find specific information without having to wade through a sea or irrelevant information.  The skill quickly becomes a natural part of non-declarative memory, as students will use the technique without thinking.

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Is intelligence the conscious accumulation of facts and knowledge?  I pondered this very question several months ago!  While talking with a few friends, someone mentioned how smart a mutual acquaintance (for all of us) is.  Everyone agreed, including me.  After each person shared a story about this “smart” guy, I noticed something.  Everyone described information he shared based on an experience or a recall of something he read.  So, I asked them, is a person smart because s/he is capable of retaining and repeating facts or sharing an experience? One person, who is close to 60 years of age, jokingly (but serious) said “yes” because at her age she can’t remember a thing!  I think intelligence is more. To answer the Padlet question posed-being a massage therapist an activity for us would be performing massage strokes appropriately.  When first learning how to perform massage strokes, without being told, the student therapist would know to avoid touching certain areas. After practice and experience the therapist would no longer panic or be so aware of the regional avoidance areas, they would without thought avoid those areas.

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Here's an example using non-declarative memory that can strengthen declarative memory. An adult values the importance of staying healthy and strong through his/her entire lifespan(non-declarative memory)Therefore, he/she reads and learns about healthy eating reading such resources as the Dietary Guidelines 2015-2020, learning about importance of exercise (30 min/day) using Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans. Since health is a priority, he/she retains the information (declarative memory) knowing that this knowledge will help lead a healthier and vibrant life.

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Implicit memory enables individuals to carry out ordinary motor actions essentially on autopilot. Implicit memory relates to remembering "how to" process. One activity that could be used to draw from non-declarative memory would be relating a concept with a common routine. For instance, if I am conducting a training on improving our sensory projects for our young students I would relate this concept with a routine and song so teachers would be able to remember and recall the steps to complete this process automatically. This essentially will enable these teachers to conduct sensory projects in steps.

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Since I'm already in the 'aging' category (54 ~ : ) I’m going to use my new sport, dirt track racing, as my reference.  (surprise!)  I have owned only manual-transmission cars for 30 years.  My learned, which turned into implicit, knowledge of controlling my speed by using the gears helped me feel confident enough to get out on the first race track 2 winters ago: a 2 mile plowed course on a frozen lake.  I also had implicit fear – from my crystalized intelligence of sliding on icy roads (I had never slid on purpose before) – so my mind was (and this persists still today) challenged with conflicting priming messages of ‘It’s Okay To GO!’ and ‘You Need To Slow Down!’   This continues to be a fun mental exercise on the ice, where I’m only racing against the clock.  On the dirt track, however, it is almost as dangerous to be slow and fearful as it is to be fast and overconfident. The best approach is to drive intentionally and in control.  The car will bounce around and it will slide. Other, much larger, cars will also bounce around and slide, with drivers in various stages of control.  (Kind of like a jam-packed “most difficult” ski run with moguls.) The knowledge needed for driving in this situation can’t be learned in a book, but I can combine the crystalized intelligence I have from driving a manual transmission vehicle in adverse conditions, with the experiential information that I gain each week, and then try my best to quiet my sensible, intrinsic fear, to become incrementally more confident and hence, more skilled.  (Last week I took 15th place, this week I was in 13th place.  I think I’m learning something!)
Side note on values in relationship to learning: if you're eco-minded (which I strive to be) my little car gets 40 mpg. I don't think I could do this in any other car. ~ : )

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When I instruct a photography class for adults I have them put their desire to take a better picture in the context of how they would use it to capture a hobby. One activity I can use to draw on their non-declarative memory is to either have the student bring a picture of something they enjoy doing or think of a particular moment in time they would like captured. I would use this image (real or imagined) as the anchor to deconstruct the scene step-by-step when introducing students to different camera settings. Technical info takes a lot of time to learn and convert into muscle memory. However, I think putting something like camera settings in the context of something my adult students are familiar with (a hobby they enjoy) can help make learning a new concept seem less intimidating, more relatable to real life, and more likely to apply the new information in their own lives. Regardless, it’s important for the instructor to go very slowly when introducing different camera functions. For example, if a student likes nature hikes and wants to capture the environment then I would first only go over one particular camera setting first and talk about how that setting could change based on the time of day the hike takes place as well as if it’s sunny or overcast. Once the student understood that, I would take a few moments for students to actually practice that during class by going outdoors and taking photos before introducing them to the next setting.

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This video and its examples of knitting, biking, and scuba diving reminded me of my experience as a hockey coach. I have been playing ice hockey since I was 8 years old, so all of it is I would call it “muscle memory” or this non-declarative memory. I am able to skate forwards and backwards, stop, turn, pivot, take different kinds of shots, all without thinking about the fact that I am doing it or how I am doing it. I came do this realization when I started coaching hockey and would have to teach children how to do these things. Trying to teach someone how to skate is more complex than just saying “just skate!” So I was forced to take a step (or stride haha) back and think about it. Okay what am I actually DOING? How can I explain this to someone who has never done this before. Same thing with taking a shot. I had to become award of where the puck was placed on the stick, how I transferred my bodyweight from back leg to front leg, etc. I guess as educators that means we really have to think about what we already know, and not to assume that our students know that information. For example today I asked one of my students to exit the page on the laptop. First of all Macs are confusing for anyone at first, but this student didn’t know how to exit. I assumed that just because that was something natural for me to know how to do that this student knew it as well, but that was not the case.

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We use the benefits of non-declarative memory to teach adults a trade.  In the career school I work in our students learn to perform phlebotomy in the Medical Assistant program.  The students first watch a video on how to perform the skill.  Next they watch the instructor perform the skill using a fake arm.  They then practice using fake arms while the instructor critiques their performance.  After so many sticks and the instructor feels as if the skill is performed well, they attempt the skill on their partner, again as the instructor is overseeing their technique.  Soon they move to other volunteers.  They need to perform 30 sticks in the class to ensure that the non-declarative memory is set.  At this point, the student might not be able to describe what they are doing, but can perform the function automatically because they have mastered it.

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In the reading one of the things that was suggested to use as a way to increase memory was to put portions of a talk throughout the house so that as you walk through your house you get the next portion of the talk. In that environment (our own home) we don't have to think about where we are going but instead it is like muscle memory and we just walk to the room that we want to be in. For this example if we applied a part of a skill lets say long division the person each step is in an environment that pulls on non-declarative memory therefor its pulling a stimuli that can be associated with the skill and will improve the skill of long division instead of making it a whole new thing for the learner. The same type of activity could be used with other skills that call on values such as have a discussion about stereo-types the by having the student identify on an unconscious belief and then breakdown why the belief is there and build on it to better understand the other person that he stereotype was associated with.

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adult's non-declarative memories are pretty close to automatic actions once they are learned. There are several examples that I could use such as riding a bike, walking, clapping your hands.  I can think of a few ways to help strengthen declarative memories in adults using non-declarative memories. One for example is what we use in the military is what we call developing muscle memory. An example of this is that when we are teaching weapons to new students, we give them a fake gun and their holster and break down every step of drawing, positioning and firing the gun. We practice each step in repetitive steps until the student can do each individual step proficiently without even realize that they are doing this, then we add all of the different steps into one motion adding each step one by one until the student can do each step without thinking about it. This way when we actually get to the live fie portion they automatically draw and shoot before they even give thought to it. This is one example how both non-declarative affects declarative learning