Top Spin
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 Posted: Sat Aug 16, 2003 5:58 pm Post subject: Empirical data on rates of forgetting? |
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Can anyone point me to any empirical data on the rate of forgetting?
For example, if someone studies 100 vocabulary words or technical
terms, how many will be forgotten in 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, etc.?
If, after a period of time (1 day 1 week, etc.), the same 100 words
are studied again, how many will then be forgotten after another
period of time?
I>ve searched Google, but didn>t find any hard numbers. Next step is
the library, but I thought I>d see if anyone knows of any books or
other sources for this data.
Thanks
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Spam sink email address, sorry |
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Wolf Kirchmeir
Guest
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| Posted: Sun Aug 17, 2003 3:21 pm Post subject: Re: Empirical data on rates of forgetting? |
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On Sat, 16 Aug 2003 05:58:03 -0700, Top Spin wrote:
[quote]Can anyone point me to any empirical data on the rate of forgetting?
For example, if someone studies 100 vocabulary words or technical
terms, how many will be forgotten in 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, etc.?
If, after a period of time (1 day 1 week, etc.), the same 100 words
are studied again, how many will then be forgotten after another
period of time?
[/quote]
Back in the 70s, Science (IIRC) reported on a study that found a forgetting
curve that peaked (troughed?) at around 10% recall around 10-12 hours after
learning, then reversed direction, so that about 18-24 hours after learning
80-90% recall was possible. I used this information to warn my students
against cramming for an exam the night before, since the 10% recall trough
would be reached mid-exam next day, and full recall wouldn>t return until
after the afternoon exam. Cram _two_ nights before, I told them. Anecdotal
evidence from them indicates the advice worked.
The authors speculated that the "forgetting" occurred while the learned
material was transferred from short-term to long-term memory. Maybe a google
on "short term & long term memory" will yield the reference.
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Best Wishes,
Wolf Kirchmeir, Blind River ON
"Not that brains are everything --
you>ll also need a skull to put them in." (Nancy Franklin, 1997)
<just one w and plain ca for correct address> |
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