One of the Major Factors Is Perception - Essay Example

Attention, Perception and Memory Introduction Preparing for examinations is one of the vital steps that s ought to take in the education curriculum. The importance is for failure to have appropriate preparation has the consequent effect of having the students fail in their papers. This failure often leads to the lack of appropriate jobs to maintain or rather lead appropriate lifestyles. There are three major points to understand when concentrating on the preparation of examinations. One of the major factors is perception. There is also memory and there is attention. Going through each of these factors assists in comprehending the cognitive processes required for appropriate concentration when preparing for examinations. Perception Perception describes the psychological process of identifying and interpreting sensory data with the aim of understanding the environment even further. The process involves signals located in the nervous system that arise from the stimulation of sensory organs. Brain mechanisms underlying perception is studied through sensory neuroscience. The famous philosopher, Andy Clark states that perception is not a process that generally involves taking information in small bits and accumulating it to a manner that it forms large complex wholes. Rather than this, perception uses predictive coding (Goldstein, 2013). Predictive coding is a manner of brain operation that involves the expectations made by the brain regarding a particular subject. When there is the meeting of particular expectations, there is the involvement of even more complex detailing with even larger expectations. Using this notion is important because it offers a larger alley of feedback process that involves the greater understanding of material especially in an education setting. Various theories explain the issue of perception. Perception as direct perception is one such theory. Cognitive theories have it that there is a lack of stimulus when focusing on a particular issue to perceive. This when further explained is prove to show that sensations do not have the ability to understand the world appropriately by their own and thus require a particular push. The push arises from the mind and thus the importance of understanding that a student does not have the ability to prepare for an examination just by studying. Failure to perceive the information by the brain often leads to cramming, a poor education process associated with many failures in the contemporary environment (Goldstein, 2013). Evolutionary psychology is another theory involved with the concept of general perception. Famous philosophers state that it is the work of the brain or rather the responsibility of perception to accumulate knowledge (Goldstein, 2013). However, when preparing for examinations, this is not the particular case and the responsibility of perception is ensuring that action is appropriately guided. Guiding action involves the learning process receiving guidance in a manner that the individual has the ability to grasp particular education concepts faster than other concepts. Perception in action is another theory involved with perception that states that without perception, action is misguided and that without action there is no need of perception. The theory states that it is important for individuals to understand the various concepts involved in the education curriculum and the importance of this is that it leads to greater accumulation of knowledge that is very imperative in the case of an examination setting. Cognitive Psychology Cognitive psychology is one major branch of the general psychology field and has had various advancements in its research. Latest studies show that the branch of psychology is rather special as compared to the others in two major different ways. One of the ways that identifies this method of psychology is the fact that it accepts that human beings and creatures in general have various internal senses applied in the day-to-day endeavors of a person. These senses include desire, belief among many other. Cognitive psychology also accepts the fact that psychology is not just a study that involves the witnessing of the behavior of a character but also the fact that there is the use of the scientific methods of investigation (Quinlan, 2008). In general, cognitive psychology deals with the in depth investigation of the internal mental processes that a human being carries out. It is essential to consider that it is achievable to develop various programs that may assist in their studies and methods of study using cognitive psychology. In the development of an examination preparation program, one of the issues to consider is involvement. There should be the evaluation of the people involved in the program to identify the most efficient method of running the program with regard to memory. The best program to incorporate is one that involves the four major players and contributors in a student’s life. These people are the teachers, the parents, the circle of friends and the student. It is very important to have these people rather than foreigners taking place in the evaluation of the program as the student feels more at ease or rather open to these people and carry out ordinary activities without the feeling of scrutiny. The involvement of the four major aspects creates some form of triangle with the parents, teachers, and friends forming the exterior and the student holding the central position inside the triangle. Memory Memory describes the storage of data and later on retrieving it when necessary. Students have very many problems associated with examination preparation and memory. Some of the memory problems may be self-induced where the character may carry out activities that may not be appealing for the studying of the person (Radstone, 2010). Contrary to this, the student may have difficulties that may arrive naturally from childbirth and continue developing from an infant and throughout the school life. Whichever the reason as to why a student may be performing poorly, it is important to develop a mechanism with which the problem can be solved for the efficiency and future endeavors of the student. The parents have the responsibility of ensuring that the short-term memory of the student is in the best condition by having him carry out several duties at home that may require a certain degree of speed and thinking capacity. The combination of speed and high thinking capacity is very important. This works very effectively in ensuring that the memory state of the student is in check. It is important to understand that the concepts learned from the home duties offered incorporated to the classroom scenario during examinations. There is the incorporation of metacognition in this process by using friends. A personal and self-evaluation is very important in that a personal decision matters a lot in the success of the process. It is the last part of the process but the sole decision as to whether it will succeed or not lies on the student. Metacognition in this process is whereby the student takes a personal decision of teaming up with a friend where they can engage each other in self-assessment tests. The carrying out of these tests is in an effort to ensure that the students work on their speed towards finishing examinations and test assignments in time (Radstone, 2010). The other memory problem faced by students is that of long-term memory. As the process goes, the first aspect to consider is the classroom situation through the teacher. The teacher is very effective in the resolution of this problem using the mnemonic strategies. Students should head out and not only speak to the teacher in charge of that subject, but any other teacher that may have assisted in the understanding of the subject from a younger age. This is because the mnemonic strategies require the students to work very effectively in the remembrance of previous and aged long study concepts. These concepts form the building block of further complex concepts in the subject. The student should ask the teacher for the best manner through which to remember the various aspects rather than trying on oneself. Attention Attention describes the concentration on one particular subject and ignoring other environmental issues. Going through the concept of attention is another major factor to review when understanding the issue of performance with regard to examinations. Attention is the process involved by the cognitive part of the brain that entails the selective concentration on a particular factor with the aim of achieving a particular goal. The process often involves ignoring other factors around the environment. There are two major types of selective attention and these are visual and auditory attention. When a student fully embarks on either or both of these attention modes, there is the ability to grasp a lot of information. The best time to incorporate these two modes of attention is during the learning process when the teacher is actually in class. Preparation for examinations is not just a process that ought to receive consideration during the final days of the learning period heading to the examination; rather it ought to begin from further back by paying attention to the teachers in a manner that an individual cannot forget concepts taught in class (Wright, 2008). It is important to understand the various concepts involved with the learning process to assist students achieve even higher grades. Comprehending the best study skills assists an individual to incorporate these skills and facts in their learning schedules or plans and the consequent of this is improved performance. Memory, attention, and perception are key in preparation of an examination and having them in the study programs ensures that students lead a better school life. References Goldstein, E. (2013). Sensation and Perception. Chicago: Chicago University Press. Quinlan, P. (2008). Cognitive Psychology: Connecting Mind, Research, and Everyday Activities. New York: Cengage Learning. Radstone, S. (2010). Memory: Histories, Theories and Debates. London: Oxford University Press. Wright, R. (2008). Orienting of Attention. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Read More