One in ten children have a ‘working memory’ impairment which causes them to do less well than expected in school. Working memory involves such things as remembering names, telephone numbers or oral instructions. (I’m sure that I’m suffering from this one!)
Thus suggests the latest research from Durham University as Dr Tracey Alloway says,
“Working memory is a bit like a mental jotting pad, and how good this is in someone will either ease their path to learning or seriously prevent them from learning.”
The solution is to have lessons on how to learn. These are popular for adults with many courses on improving ‘brain power’ but are not generally taught in school.
This is certainly something I would advocate for schools to seriously consider. It is quite an eye opener when teachers are faced with the reality of many pupils who have a lack of ability to remember mathematical facts for even a few minutes.