Seminar: Memory and Education

Research seminar – short presentations and discussion of how we think about and apply memory concepts across all educational settings.
About this Event

This is a free whole-day academic seminar organised by the Advanced Pedagogical Theory and Higher Education Research & Pedagogy research subthemes (Strathclyde Institute of Education).

“Life is not what one lived, but what one remembers and how one remembers it in order to recount it.” – Gabriel García Márquez

Memory is a central but controversial topic within Education. In many educational systems, memorisation is both required and seen as undesirable. Many institutions and curricula explicitly focus on skills rather than knowledge, but skilled thinking is bound up with what a learner knows and can recall, for example when they engage in hypothesis testing or evaluation of a creative idea.

In addition, memory is not simply an individual cognitive process; it is also social, cultural and political. Educational sectors are shaped by collective memories, traditions, and inherited practices. There are major challenges in the selection of and therefore prioritisation among different cultural artefacts and perspectives.

At this seminar, we will hear perspectives on these issues informed by research from Education Studies and related fields, giving attendees a chance to consider and discuss memory’s role in education (both concepts broadly conceived).

Issues which may feature in the day’s discussion include:

• What role should memory play in courses and curricula?

• What do teachers and lecturers need to know about memory processes?

• Can a person’s memory be improved?

• What are the implications of technologies on memory?

• How does memory connect to wellbeing, emotion, and changes across the lifespan?

• What educational challenges relate to cultural and collective memory?

• How do rituals, traditions, art and narratives interact with memory?

• Historically, how have educational approaches reflected popular assumptions about memory?

• What are ethical and research questions link to memory and education?

The seminar aims to foster interdisciplinary dialogue about the many ways memory shapes educational theory, research, and practice.

Agenda

🕑: 09:30 AM - 10:00 AM
Coffee
🕑: 10:00 AM - 10:20 AM
J. Firth: Introduction – Memory and Education
🕑: 10:20 AM - 11:00 AM
Talk 1: TBA
🕑: 11:00 AM - 11:40 AM
Talk 2: TBA
🕑: 11:40 AM - 12:00 PM
Coffee break
🕑: 12:00 PM - 12:40 PM
Talk 3: TBA
🕑: 12:40 PM - 01:00 PM
General discussion; reflection on talks 1–3
🕑: 01:00 PM - 02:00 PM
Lunch (independent)
🕑: 02:00 PM - 02:40 PM
Talk 4: TBA
🕑: 02:00 PM - 03:20 PM
Talk 5: TBA
🕑: 03:20 PM - 03:40 PM
Coffee
🕑: 03:40 PM - 04:20 PM
Talk 6: TBA
🕑: 04:20 PM - 04:30 PM
General discussion; reflection on talks 4–6; closing remarks and thanks.