✅ Checkpoint: memory foundations

By Better Wise

Quiz

  1. A learner can restate a page while the book is open but goes blank once it is closed. According to the memory model, which stage is most likely weak?
    • Encoding: the material was never processed deeply enough to form a findable trace
    • Storage: the trace has decayed completely and cannot be recovered
    • Retrieval: the trace exists but needs a different cue set
    • Working memory: the learner has too many chunks to hold at once
  2. Why is the filing-cabinet model of memory wrong?
    • Cues have no effect on what can be recalled
    • Retrieval is reconstructive: each recall rebuilds the memory instead of playing back a stored file
    • Storage strength and retrieval strength are the same property
    • Memories are stored in the working memory and never reach long-term storage
  3. The subjective ease with which the mind processes material, which learners mistake for evidence of learning, is called ____.
  4. In the side-by-side experiment, what usually happens after a one to two day delay?
    • Both sections score the same because the delay erases the difference
    • Section A (rereading) earns higher confidence, while section B (recall practice) earns the higher delayed score
    • Section B earns higher confidence but section A scores higher on the test
    • Section A earns both higher confidence and a higher delayed score
  5. Which statement best captures the desirable difficulty principle?
    • Tasks should be kept easy so that confidence stays high and motivation does not drop
    • Difficulty should be maximized by removing all hints and feedback
    • Conditions that lower retrieval strength and still let you succeed are the conditions that raise storage strength
    • The harder a task feels, the more durable the learning, regardless of whether you can succeed
  6. A useful calibration target for practice is about ____ percent success, roughly a 15 percent error rate.
  7. Which of these are signals that a struggle is productive rather than wasteful? Select all that apply.
    • Your effort goes into decoding unfamiliar notation or wording rather than the target idea
    • You miss some attempts and you can see why you missed
    • A small hint or a quick check gets you back on track
    • Your effort goes into the target concept, even though it feels hard
  8. Which sequence matches the recommended order for tuning difficulty levers?
    • Change all four levers together so the effect is large enough to notice
    • Remove cues first, then add delay, then mix topics, changing one lever at a time
    • Mix topics first, then remove cues, then add delay, all at once
    • Add delay first, then increase chunk size, then remove feedback
  9. Design a short side-by-side experiment for one topic in your project plan: compare rereading with closed-book recall. Describe your prediction, the procedure, and how you will read the result without overcorrecting.

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