Unmotivated or poor working memory?
I see some students in my class who are daydreaming, looking out the window, just not really paying attention to what I am saying. How can I tell whether they have poor working memory , or are just unmotivated?
Mary, Ohio
Currently, working memory is not identified as a problem in the classroom, despite leading to learning difficulties. There are very clear signs that a student will show in a classroom if they have poor working memory. Some of them include:
- Failing to follow instructions
- Raising their hand to answer a question but forgetting what they wanted to say
- Sitting quietly at their desk but not doing the assignment because they can’t remember what it is
- Difficulty in writing tasks, for example, writing the same letter twice or missing out words
The main difference between an unmotivated student and one with poor working memory is that the student with poor working memory struggles in all areas of learning. They have a hard time coping in the classroom with even simple tasks because their working memory is not ‘big’ enough to keep in all the information. In contrast, the unmotivated student can do well on some days when they try hard. This means that their working memory is good but sometimes they don’t want to put out the effort.
If you are concerned that a student may have poor working memory, click here to find more on testing working memory.
