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Graduated
Interval Recall is a complex name for a very simple theory about
memory. No aspect of learning a foreign language is more important
than memory, yet before Dr. Pimsleur’s work, no one had explored
more effective ways for building language memory.
In
his research, Dr. Pimsleur discovered how long students remembered
new information and at what intervals they needed to be reminded
of it. If reminded too soon or too late, they failed to retain
the information. This discovery enabled him to create a schedule
of exactly when and how the information should be reintroduced.
Suppose
you learn a new word. You tell yourself to remember it, but after
five minutes you can’t recall it. If you’d been reminded
of it after five seconds, you probably would have remembered it
for maybe a minute—then you would have needed another reminder.
Each time you are reminded, you remember the word longer than
you did the time before. The intervals between reminders become
longer and longer, until you eventually remember the word without
being reminded at all.
This
program is designed to remind you of new information at the exact
intervals where maximum retention takes place. Each time your
memory begins to fade, you will be asked to recall the word. Through
this powerful method, you progress from short–term to long–term
memory without being aware of it, while avoiding the monotonous
rote repetition used in traditional language courses.
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