Let s examine this system more closely The skills most needed for good learning In the model below, the lower section is called the active processing system which represents what the mind is occupied with at any given time. The upper section represents additional mental skills that are available to be used and interact with any incoming information. It is the work center . As incoming information is processed, other mental skills come into play and interact with it. For example , long-term memory is used to compare incoming information with past experiences so that we can determine if it is new, old, or a modification of information we have stored in the past.
Visual information requires visual processing skills to discriminate and analyze information.
Likewise, auditory input requires auditory processing skills to analyze and process sound information. Problem solving activities require logic and reasoning skills, and listening and reading require comprehension skills for understanding. This whole process is governed by a planning function which may tell us that the information coming in is useless, and thus we should ignore it and not attend to it. Or it may determine that the information is useful, and something we should pay particular attention to. The degree to which all these individual mental skills are developed and the efficiency with which they work and integrate with each other , factor significantly into the overall ability of the active processing system to handle information accurately, quickly, and efficiently.