Chapter 2
THE DYNAMIC OF ARITHMETIC - RICHARD DALLAWAY
MEMORY FOR ARITHMETIC FACTS
There are a number of ways to find the answer to "6x7". Strategies
might include counting a row of six 7s, recalling the answer to 6x6 and
adding on another 6, using a calculator, or pure recall. Children tend to
use a number of strategies, but as they become older they tend
to rely on recall alone (Siegler 1988).
This chapter investigates adults' recall of multiplication facts.
Although adults do use other strategies, recall seems to be most frequently
used, and it is also the strategy that has been the subject of many
detailed experiments. First, a review is presented of the typical reaction
times (RTs) and errors of adults recalling multiplication facts. A number
of models have been proposed to account for the phenomena, and these are
reviewed in section 2.2. A new connectionist model of fact
recall, based on McClelland's (1979, 1988) "cascade"
equations, is described in chapter 3.