Memory Retention | Remembering Vocabulary Words
Do you have a good memory? Do you have issues with remembering vocabulary words?
memory ˈmɛm(ə)ri/ noun
1) the faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information “I have a great memory for faces” 2) something remembered from the past “My favorite childhood memory is visiting my Grandmother”
Memory plays a HUGE role in language learning. It is all about remembering vocabulary, grammar rules, idioms, phrasal verbs, the list goes on and on…
In this info graphic from Online Colleges we can see Hermann Ebbinghaus’ ‘forgetting curve’
As you can see, REVIEWING information is very important for retaining the things that you learn. If you do not review, you will quickly forget the things you have just learned.
Reviewing and using the language are a very important part of the learning process. Some people focus on learning new words everyday, but never actually practice using them in a real-life setting. When you actively use a word (with speaking or writing), you are reviewing it. Listening and reading also are forms of reviewing as they are reinforcing the words in your memory, but they are a passive form of review.
Anyone can read a page in the dictionary, but to truly ‘know’ the words, you have to be able to use them.