ElmCore Journal of Educational Psychology October, 2014 | Page 52

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of the demands of modern society, it seems that
additional effort must be placed on the assessment of
higher-level cognitive skills and information
processing.
Fortunately for educators, there are many
constant themes of information processing regardless
of the specific theory to which one subscribes. Almost
all ideas related to how information becomes stored in
memory agree that the learner more deeply and
meaningfully processes information that is presented
in a context-rich manner. It has been demonstrated
that when new information is presented within a
context of knowledge that a learner possesses, he or
she has background knowledge with which new
information can be compared and categorized. This
categorization is also a critical piece of information
processing at high levels.
These theories all work under the
assumption that new information can most effectively
be learned if the material can be matched to memory
structures already in place (Winn and Snyder, 2001, p.
3). Most theories hold that the mind contains some
type of framework into which new information is
placed. This structure is multi-leveled and has varying
degrees of specificity. New information can be
matched with, compared to, contrasted to, joined with,
or modified to fit with existing structures. This inplace structural system allows for differing levels of
complexity of information processing. The formation
of and continual building of these structures, then, is
critical in order for learners to process information in
various ways and at higher levels. Again, though, the
question becomes how to assess this development.
What, then, should cognitive assessments
look like? If one argues that current methods are
inappropriate, why are they so? If they are
inappropriate, what should these assessments do
differently to accommodate the best theories of
development and help move students to higher-level
thinking and information processing?
Stiggins (2002) says, “Clearly, over the
decades, we have believed that by checking
achievement status and reporting the results to the
public we can apply the pressure needed to intensify –
and thus speed – school improvement” (p. 3). This has

ElmCore® Journal of Educational Psychology

not occurred. He argues, though, that there is a way
that assessment can directly improve schools. “If
assessments of learning provide evidence of
achievement for public reporting, then assessments for
learning serve to help students learn more. The crucial
distinction is between assessment to determine the
status of learning and assessment to promote greater
learning” (p. 4). The factor that he views as most
important for this more formative view of assessment
is to involve students in the process and help them to
be accountable for their learning.

Summary and Conclusions
In summary, there are many different
theories of information processing that focus on
different aspects of perceiving, remembering, and
reasoning. One of the most important agreements is
that elaboration is a key to permanently storing
information in a way that facilitates its quick retrieval
when it is needed. Bloom et al (1956) and Anderson
and Krathwohl (2000) provide some excellent
suggestions as to how we can encourage increased
elaboration among our students. However, as proposed
by Hummel and Huitt (1994) if students are not
required to demonstrate the results of elaboration on
meaningful tasks such as examinations or projects,
they are not likely to adequately develop the skills
required for higher-level thinking. It is, therefore,
imperative that educators and parents require the
development and use of these skills as a normal
process of students’ lives. If we do that, the amounts
and types of student knowledge will increase
dramatically and students will be better prepared for
life as adults in the information age.

References
Abbot, B. (2002). Human memory. Fort Wayne:
Indiana University-Purdue University at Fort
Wayne, Psychology Department. Retrieved
June 22, 2002, from
http://users.ipfw.edu/abbot/120/LongTermM
emory.html

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