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Memory gives us a past and a record of who we are, which allows us to draw on experience and use the power of prediction to decide how we will respond to future events (Sousa, 2022). Memory is the process that allows us to retain knowledge and skills to use throughout our lifetime. When memories are established new connections between neurons which is called synapses are formed, thereby consolidating the memory and making it more easily retrievable (Sousa, 2022).

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Long-term memory is a permanent storage space which holds information for years because there is not a limit on how much information you can store (Cleveland Clinic, 2024). This type of memory is important in an educational environment because it allows students to permanently store the information that they have learned/are learning and reflect back on it when they need to activate their prior knowledge. Long-term memory is enhanced when students engage in retrieval practice, such as taking a test (Thorne, 2006). When students are taking a test, they are able to reflect on their long-term memory and recall information they have studied/learned to help them answer questions correctly.

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Short-term memory is a temporary storage space, it holds information for a few seconds to minutes which is easily accessible (Cleveland Clinic, 2024). This type of memory has a limited capacity. A way to increase the capacity of short-term memory is to chunk information and rehearse the information. Short-term memory is important in an educational environment because it allows students to remember given instructions in order to complete an assignment and/or task. This is extremely important for students because if they have deficits in registering information in short-term memory, they will have difficulty remembering instructions or directions they have just been given (Thorne, 2006). To enhance short-term memory, students can underline, highlight, and take notes throughout a lesson. By doing this, students are able to go back and read what they underlined, highlighted, or wrote down.

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Sensory memory is the information collected from your senses (hearing, touch, smell, taste, and vision), which you can only store for a couple of seconds (Cleveland Clinic, 2024). This type of memory is important in an educational environment because it allows students to recall what someone just said to them, such as during a lesson (Sousa, 2022). The student is then able to briefly hold sensory information before deciding which details are important to process and learn.

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Retention is the preservation of learning in long-term storage in a way that can be identified and recalled quickly and accurately (Sousa, 2022). Retention and learning are connected because it is the ability of remembering and recalling information that students have learned over time. Students retain information that they have learned throughout their school experience and are able to use this knowledge to recall and identify when needed. For example, if a student learns their letter name and sounds, when they are learning how to read they are able to retain that information and use it to help them read and sound out a word.

Transfer is the influence that past learning has on new learning, which the new learning will be useful in the learners future (Sousa, 2022). Transfer and learning are connected because it helps students with problem solving and creative thinking, which are two main aspects used in the classroom when students are learning new information. Transfer also connects with learning because it reflects on the learner's ability to acquire new knowledge or skills in another context (Sousa, 2022). This is important for students when learning because students are able to use information learned in one context area and use that knowledge to help them in a different context area. For example, students can use their math skills to help them in science to help them with experiments.

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Trauma can cause dramatic, and sometimes permanent, behavior and personality changes, including loss of speech and difficulties with memory (Sousa, 2022). Trauma can affect memory by causing a difficulty recalling details of the trauma. When a student experiences trauma, they tend to have a hard time recalling and obtaining information because their brain and memory are not focused on what is occurring, instead it is focused on their traumatic experiences. Trauma or stress may make thinking and remembering challenging for students when learning, in certain situations their brains may choose to protect them from harmful memories by blocking out selective memory (Cleveland Clinic, 2024).

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A strategy that can be used to improve student memory in the classroom is to give directions in multiple formats. Giving students directions in both visual and verbal formats can help their understanding and memorizing of instructions by encouraging them to repeat the directions given and explain the meaning of these directions (Thorne, 2006). This strategy can also help students who have experienced trauma because when a teacher gives directions in multiple formats, these students are able to pick the format that is the most comfortable for them. By providing multiple formats, the student is not feeling focused, instead the student is choosing the format that works best for them. This strategy is helpful in education and learning in general, because it gives the learners the opportunity to pick and choose the format that suits their knowledge and experiences the best.

Another strategy that can be used to improve student retention is to teach students to over-learn material. Students should be taught the necessity of "over-learning" new information, often students practice only until they are able to perform one error-free repetition, however, several error-free repetitions are needed to solidify the information (Thorne, 2006). When a student has experienced trauma, they are often times scared to mess up or do something wrong, so by allowing students to understand that mistakes are normal and repeating material over and over can help students who have experienced trauma. This strategy is helpful in education and learning in general, because it gives the learners the chance to repeat different learning tasks until they have mastered the task. When a students repeats information, it allows them to improve their memory retention.