This paper provides a critical examination of the current status of metamemory. First, review of background influences and a critique of conceptualizations of metamemory are presented. Next, research methods are examined, and empirical results concerning the relationship between metamemory and memory are reviewed. Finally, several suggestions are…

Reviews and synthesizes, within the broad framework of comparative cognition, several approaches to the study of human memory, including ontogenetic, cultural/sociohistorical, and clinical research. Asserts that future research on comparative memory development must focus on the flexible and adaptive use of memory skills to meet purposes…

Examines the background of schema theory and discusses the contention that content schemata is more important to the reader than textual schemata. Concludes that the more useful schemata is determined by the context rather than one schemata type always being more important than the other. (FL)

Thirty-six braille students (grades 4 through 12) were asked to inspect a tactile display consisting of nine removable symbols. Students in the lower grades benefited most from the systematic searching training and were superior to the control group in the same grades. (Author)

Clear quantitative and qualitative differences in visual scanning strategies were found between the groups and discussed with respect to differences between perceptually impaired and normal children's rates of encoding information and reliance upon visual memory. (Author)

A study involving 119 fifth graders indicated that the "Durrell Visual Memory of Words: Intermediate" measures auditory-visual integration rather than being a pure measure of visual memory, as is purported. (CL)

A study involving deaf and hearing children investigated the perceptual abilities of deaf children employing tasks with both simultaneously and sequentially presented stimulus material. A series of motion picture tests, mostly involving abstract geometric figures, suggested that deaf and hearing children are comparable on visual memory tasks and…

Overall recall was not facilitated by incentive, but there was an increase in the rate of recall when incentive was available. This effect was the same for all subjects, and performance deficits observed for the older subjects were not reduced by incentive. (Author)

Reports that recent research on strategies for increasing learning from reading suggests that developmentally appropriate instructions to create mental images, to verbally elaborate, and to relate new information to prior knowledge may increase students' recall of what they read. (FL)

Differences in visual encoding speed for reading is related to differences in ability to access memory codes for other meaningful patterns. This difference is shown in the advantage of better readers in reaction time in deciding if two line drawings belonged to the same category. Better readers have faster access for any meaningful pattern. (PJM)

Reports on PRL-8-53, an experimental drug that will boost the chemical system in the brain called the cholinergic system and thereby improve one's ability to retrieve information from a preexisting information pool. (Author/IRT)

Argues that the distinction between short-term memory and long-term memory is no longer adequate for either human or animal memory data. Recommends additional research on the physiological brain processes underlying memory interference and retrieval. (MP)

A recognition memory experiment with 8-, 11- and 20-year-olds investigated the hypothesis that, with age, semantic encoding becomes increasingly important relative to acoustic encoding. (CM)