Opinions - Evaluations - Reading

-- 09 -- Points of View - Inference 2

-- 09 -- Points of View -

TFY C7 Viewpoints: What's the Filter?

The chapter is about how to recognize viewpoints, understand how they filter reality for us, and how to develop the habit of assessing the source of any information we receive. Exercises and discussion in this chapter will show you the importance of assessing source, how stories revolve around viewpoints, how conscious and unconscious viewpoints differ, how different viewpoints contain different ideologies and rhetoric, how political viewpoints might be characterized, how news framing conveys and shapes viewpoints, and how propaganda expresses hidden vested interests that might not be in your own best interest. Writing applications will allow you to sample the rhetoric, ideas and values of multiple viewpoints, both familiar and unfamiliar. Concluding readings represent the viewpoints of a public figure, Diane Ravitch, who made a radical change in her viewpoint about educational reform, as well as the viewpoint of a story writer, Alice Owens-Johnson, who shapes her comedic story through a single viewpoint perspective.

An unconscious viewpoint	An unconscious viewpoint is a perspective unidentified by the viewer.
Egocentrism	Egocentrism is the assumption that one’s perspective is the only perspective.
Ethnocentrism	Ethnocentrism is the assumption that one’s own social or cultural group is superior to all others.
News framing	News framing describes the way relative importance can be implied about a news item by layout design, page placement, photos, and the wording of headlines.
Propaganda	1) To publicize or promote something; 2) To promulgate ideas in a dishonest or manipulative way for the benefit of the propagator and regardless of its possible harm to others.
Source	The point of origin. In writing: its author, the publication, its reputation, known or unknown viewpoint and sponsors.
Vested Interest	A biased viewpoint with a hidden financial or personal stake in its outcome.
Viewpoint	A viewpoint is a personal or collective perspective consisting of memories, beliefs, and associations from which events are observed and evaluated.

Inference Making - Video

CHAPTER THREE: REMEMBERING WHAT YOU READ

Memories are the key not to the past, but to the future.

                                                                                   C. Boom

·         Chapter Outline (for transparency) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .    42

·         Chapter Summary (for transparency) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .    43

·         Chapter Opener  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .    44

·         Supplemental Exercises  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .      49

·         Supplemental Vocabulary Quiz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .     52

OUTLINE

Chapter 3: REMEMBERING WHAT YOU READ

I.                   Chapter Objectives and Vocabulary

II.                Memory Survey

·         What is Memory?

·         Sensory Memory

·         Attention

·         Intention

·         Short-Term Memory

·         Chunking

·         Rehearsal

·         Long-Term Memory

·         Organizing Information

·         Master Difficult Vocabulary

·         Create a Memory Matrix

·         Connect New Information with What You Already Know

·         Note Comparisons

·         Go Beyond Textbook Information

·         Review

·         Teach It!

III.             Common Reasons Students Forget What They Read

·         Attention

·         Don't Understand the Information

·         Poor Organization of Newly Learned Information

IV.             Strategies for Recalling Information - Mnemonics

V.                Test Taking and Memory

VI.             Practice Reading Passages

VII.          Summary

VIII.    Post Test

SUMMARY

Chapter 3: REMEMBERING WHAT YOU READ

Memory is the process of storing and retrieving information. There are three primary stages in the memory process: sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory. Knowing about these stages and purposely applying memory strategies during each stage will help you to remember what you read.

Sensory Memory      

·         Pay close attention and use all of your senses.

Short-Term Memory

·         Organize information in meaningful ways. Use the memory technique, chunking. Chunkingreduces the number of isolated items that you have to remember.

Long-Term Memory

Use the following strategies to store information in your long-term memory:

·         Organize newly learned information.

·         Master difficult vocabulary.

·         Create a memory matrix.

·         Connect new information with information you already know.

·         Note similarities

·         Research new information.

·         Review what you have learned on a regular basis.

·         Teach new information.

·         Use mnemonics to help you remember material.

·         Master difficult vocabulary.

The single most important aspect of memory: understanding what you are trying to remember.

CHAPTER OPENER: KEYS TO MEMORY

Goal

To teach students that to remember new information effectively, material has to be organized and related to something they already know. (This exercise demonstrates the concept of chunking that is discussed in detail in the chapter.)

dIRECTIONS

Copy the THREE pages following these directions onto transparencies, or a disk (pages 45-47). Introduce the exercise by explaining to your students that Chapter Three addresses memory and demonstrates how memory, learning, and reading are linked.

Show them the first overhead. It's important that you give them no more than 30 seconds to view it and provide no learning prompts. After 30 seconds, ask them to recall all the letters they are able to remember. (There are a total of 40.)

Next, show them the second overhead. Again, only allow them 30 seconds to view it and ask them to recall as many letters as they can. Chances are, they will remember more because the letters are now organized into words. Most students will remember at least two words. Total the number of letters in the words they remember, but still do not discuss the exercise. (There are a total of 40.)

Finally, show them the third overhead for 30 seconds and ask them to recall the letters they see. Most students will remember 100% of the letters because they are organized into words, and the words are organized into a meaningful sentence. (There are a total of 57 letters.)

Now, ask your students why they believe they couldn't remember the letters in overheads #1 and #2 as easily. Their responses might include the following:

·         Not enough rep time

·         No reason to remember it

·         Not relevant

·         Not concentrating

·         Frustration with exercise

·         Not intending to learn - "so what attitude" (This is a very important issue that will be addressed in the chapter. Students need to know that their desire or intent to learn significantly impacts their ability to remember what they read. Thinking, learning and remembering go hand-in-hand.)

Now ask them to discuss why they could remember more letters in overhead #3. Their responses might include the following:

·         The letters were organized into words.

·         The words were organized into a sentence.

·         There were fewer separate items to remember.

·         They could remember the words more easily than the individual letters.

After a few minutes of discussion, you can introduce the idea of organizing information - creating systems - to help with memory. The first overhead showed a number of isolated letters. They weren't related so it was hard to memorize them individually. The letters in the second overhead were "organized" into meaningful chunks, words, which made it easier to remember more of them, even though the group of words didn't make sense. Finally, the letters in the third overhead were organized into words, and the words were organized into a meaningful sentence. By remembering the words in the sentence, students could easily remember all of the letters.

Explain that many students study their course material as if what they are reading consists of isolated and unrelated pieces of information (overhead #1). Stress how important it is for them to become engaged, and actively involved, with new information, and to learn how to organize it so they can remember it more efficiently. The focus of Chapter 3 is to show that most people actually have good memories. The chapter explains the barriers to remembering information and provides many strategies for overcoming those barriers and remembering information more effectively.

chapter three: overhead # 1

B C D A G F B W G L M D W X Z T

P A D E C N V Q Y O R U E N T Z S

 M X D T P H E

chapter three: overhead # 2

QUEEN HICCUP SNOW COURSE

TEETH RED MANUAL LOTUS

chapter three: overhead # 3

THE QUEEN COVERED HER

MOUTH SO THAT NO ONE COULD

SEE HER MISSING TEETH.

supplemental exercises

There are two supplemental exercises for this chapter. Information about each is provided on this page and the related material follows on separate pages that you can print out for use with your students.

Exercise 3-1: Remember by Making Associations

Purpose

The purpose of this exercise is to introduce the concept of memory, and to demonstrate that using strategies, such as creating associations, can help to increase your memory.

Directions

1.   Ask students to get out a piece of paper, and a pencil. Tell them not to write anything down

      until you ask them to do so.

2.      Tell them you will be reading out the following list of words and want them to remember as many as they can:

·         Hamburger

·         Feather           

·         Gate   

·         Closet

·         Tree    

·         Marshmallow 

·         Religion

·         Fish    

·         Men    

·         Beaks                         

3.      Now ask students to see how many words they can remember, in the order you read them, in one minute. Have students share their lists. Some will have used strategies they have developed to help them. Don't have them share their strategies at this point.

4.      Ask them to turn their papers over, write the numbers 1 through 10, and then put their pencils down and listen as you read the list again.

5.      Tell students to close their eyes and try to see the pictures you will create with for each word. As you read the list again, provide an association for each word. Use associations that are strange or silly or rhyme. (Yes, even silly…that’s the point. The stranger the connections are, the more likely students will be able to remember the list of words.) Below are possible descriptions you could use but feel free to create your own sentences.

·         One - BUN - hamburger, one enormous hamburger on the largest bun I’ve ever seen. Hamburger.

·         Two - SHOES with a feather. Two fun shoes dancing with feathers. Big shoes with blue feathers. Feather.

·         Three - KEYS for a gate. Three keys to open the gate…don’t be late. Gate.

·         Four - DOOR as a closet. At four the door to your closet opens. Closet.

·         Five - HIVE in the tree. Five hives in the tree. Bzzzzzzzzzz Cut the tree. Tree.

·         Six - STICKS for marshmallows. Pick up six sticks to roast marshmallows by the campfire. Marshmallows.

·         Seven - HEAVENfor a religion. I see seven nuns flying to heaven; it’s my religion. Religion.

·         Eight - BAIT for fish. Eight pieces of bait to catch fish. Big wiggly bait for big slippery fish. Fish.

·         Nine - FINE men. My goodness! Nine fine men are here! Fine men are always welcome. Men.

·         Ten - HENS beaks. Ten hens are loose and poking with their beaks. Red hens’ beaks. Beaks.

6. Have students open their eyes and try to recall as many of the words as they can, in order.

7. When students have finished writing, ask them if it was easier to remember the list the second

    time? Most students find using the associations provided, and visualizing them, does improve

    their ability to remember the words.

Connecting information to familiar items helps to facilitate the memory. Also, connecting words that rhyme helps to "trigger" memory. This exercise is a helpful tool for proving the point that doing something with information is sometimes necessary in order to remember it effectively. Learning about and using strategies can be useful. If any students used different memory strategies, invite them to share their strategies with the class.

Exercise 3-2: Using Rhyme to Remember

Purpose

To reinforce the mnemonic technique of using rhyme.

Directions

In groups of four, using one chapter you have studied from this textbook, create a song, jingle, or poem. Your composition should include they key points from the chapter. Get creative and have fun with it. You can choose to video your song, and use it as an example of learning outcomes if you are creating an electronic portfolio; you may perform live for the class; or you may submit it in paper format and have others in the class perform it.

(You can explain to students) that rhyming is a very effective way to remember information. For example, “In 1942, Columbus sailed the oceans blue....” “Listen my children and you shall hear about the midnight ride of Paul Revere….” Songs, stories, and poetry are ways that have been used for centuries to remember and share history. Allow students to provide examples, for example, hip hop music, etc.)

Language and Thought and Action Video

Mind Mapping Video

Observation and Deduction

Power Up Your Deduction Skills with Critical ThinkingP

Once you start paying close attention to the world, you can start turning those observations into theories or ideas. Deduction is about thinking through a situation logically, and then applying critical thinking to what you're seeing. Essentially, critical thinking is analyzing what you observe closely, and deduction is coming up with a conclusion based on those facts.P

Analyze What You See or Read, and Ask QuestionsP

SEXPAND

You're not going to find a complete guidebook out there for critical thinking, but the first step is to recapture your childlike awe of the world and start asking as many questions as possible. Konnikova suggests you start asking yourself questions:P

It's important to teach yourself to think critically about something. So, when you store new information or learn anything new, you don't just by rote put it in your brain, you learn to critically analyze everything. You ask yourself, "Why is this important?" "How does this connect with things I already know?" or "Why do I want to remember it?" When you're doing that you're training your brain to make connections between things and you're building a network of knowledge.P

This is a bit of extra work, but boosting your reading comprehension isn't that hard, and when you get in the habit of doing it you'll walk away with a stronger memory of what you read. When you're asking a lot of questions, you're thinking critically, and that improves your skills at deduction in general. We've talked before about using Michel de Montaigne's idea of writing notes in books, and that's an excellent step to take here as well. Once you write down your opinion, and the questions you have after reading, it'll solidify those ideas in your head longer.Photo by francois.P

4

How to Boost Your Reading Comprehension by Reading Smarter and More Conscientiously

With all of the things out there to read on the internet—all of the blogs we want to keep up with…Read more

Form Connections Between What You See and What You KnowP

SEXPAND

Of course, all the increased perception and critical thinking isn't going to do you any good unless you can start making connections between the knowledge you have and what you see. Konnikova describes this as maximizing your mental real estate:P

It's not necessarily that Holmes remembers more, but that he can see connections that people usually miss. People think Holmes is this paragon of logic, but that logic is innately imaginative at its core. He doesn't think linearly, he engages his entire network of possible connections.P

Essentially, Holmes remembers so much because he encodes knowledge by seeing its uses right away. It's similar to how the memory palace works, but instead of leveraging the memory on a space, it connects it to previous knowledge like a mind map. Traditionally, mind maps are used as brainstorming tools, but they're a great way to take notes as well. I used mind maps for notes throughout college to connect ideas between classes together, and it helped solidify those memories in my head far better than when I simply wrote down what the professor was saying.P

Drastically Improve Your Memory by Building a Memory Palace

U.S.-record-holding memory champ Joshua Foer explains how anyone with an average memory can…Read more

So, how does all this work together? The more connections you make, and the more often you think critically, the better you're going to get at making deductions:P

It has to do a lot with the way that information is stored in Holmes' brain. It's kind of a circular argument—learning to think critically about something will also innately teach you remember something better. In doing that you're not only enhancing your ability to make deductions but you're also increasing your knowledge base.P

With a little practice and critical thinking, you'll eventually be able to start making those trademark leaps in logic Holmes is known for.P

Observation and Deduction

from http://lifehacker.com/5960811/how-to-develop-sherlock-holmes-like-powers-of-observation-and-deduction

Increase Your Knowledge BaseP

SEXPAND

One of the big takeaways from Sherlock Holmes—or any detective out there—is that it's rarely worth it to condense your knowledge into a specialty. Being more of a renaissance type with both your learning and your skill set will make your skills of deduction much stronger. Konnikova sums it up like so:P

You should be broad in your knowledge. Holmes says that you should have a clean "brain attic," but he's also a walking encyclopedia of knowledge. He reads incredibly broadly—he reads about art, music—things that you would think have no bearing on his detective work. I think that's an important lesson that we can take. It's bad to overspecialize, and we should try to remain as curious about all the different types of things you want to learn.P

Being a student of everything isn't an easy task, but whether you're looking to read people better, or just increase your general knowledge base, we've got you covered. Here are a few places to start from our own archives:P

• Broaden Your Knowledge of General Studies with Lifehacker UniversityP
• Top 10 Ways to Make Yourself Look (and Be) SmarterP
• Top 10 Tips and Tricks to Train, Exercise, and Better Your BrainP
• How to Train Your Brain and Boost Your Memory like a USA Memory ChampionP
• I Learned to Speak Four Languages in a Few Years: Here's HowP
• Broaden Your Horizons by Randomizing Your Reading MaterialP
• How to Detect When Someone's Lying and Get Them to Tell the TruthP
• How to Determine if a Controversial Statement is Scientifically TrueP
• How to Spot Truth in the Sea of Lies, Rumors, and Myths on the InternetP
• How Science Can Teach You to Easily Spot a LiarP

It takes a lot of practice and the formation of true habits to emulate the way Sherlock Holmes and other detectives view the world, but it's not that difficult to do yourself. Once you train your brain to stop and pay attention to the tiny details, the rest of the process falls into place. Before you know it you're able to analyze any situation—whether it's a friend's hangover or a stranger's affair—in no time. Photo by Nick Webb.P

Maria Konnikova is a journalist, psychologist, and author of the upcoming book, Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes. You can find more of her writing on her web site.P