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A bad Working Memory-the brain's temporary storage box-may explain, new research suggests,
why one child cannot read his or her history book and another gets lost in math. As many as 10 percent
of schoolage children may suffer from poor working memory. British researchers said in a report last
week, yet the problem is rarely identified.
"You can think of working memory as a pure measure of your child's potential. Many psychologists
consider working memory to be the new IQ (智商), because we find that working memory is one of
the most important predictors of learning ability, " said Dr. Tracey Alloway of Britain's Durham
University.
Many children with poor working memory are considered lazy or dull. Working memory allows people
to hold in their minds and deal with a few items, such as telephone numbers, over a short period of
time. Alloway compares working memory to a box. For adults, the basic box size is thought to be three
to five items. It's important, therefore, to put in the right things. Irrelevant (不相关的) information will
clutter (混乱) working memory.
The question many researchers are struggling with is how to help children with this problem, which
appears to be closely related to a lack of attention.
"In children with learning difficulties, it becomes a huge issue, especially around middle school,
when the demands on working memory really grow, " said Dr. Mel Levine, cofounder of All Kinds
of Minds, a nonprofit organization in North Carolina that studies learning difficulties.
Memory training may help improve working memory. Alloway has a tool that allows teachers to
assess (评定) the workingmemory capacity of children as young as 4； it has been used in 35 schools
across Britain.
Levine's organization trains teachers through a program called Schools Attuned, which is working
with several thousand schools across the United States, Canada and Europe. While he is not sure
working memory can be expanded, Levine said children can be taught ways to do better in school.
1. Which of the following is a characteristic of working memory?
A. It has a limited capacity.
B. It is usually better in children than adults.
C. It improves with use.
D. It can cause a lack of attention.
2. According to the new research, ________.
A. the importance of working memory has been long recognized
B. working memory is becoming recognized as a factor in intelligence
C. laziness can weaken working memory
D. working memory helps people remember things forever
3. Which of the following may help improve a child's working memory?
A. Expanding the brain's storage box.
B. Remembering more things.
C. Training the memory.
D. Being reminded frequently.
4. According to the passage, Dr. Mel Levine has ________.
A. invented tools to help improve a child's working memory
B. founded an organization to train teachers to help students with this problem
C. identified the problem clearly
D. compared working memory to a box
