Abstract:

Mnemotechnics constitute a set of intentional procedures aimed at improving the encoding, organization, and recall of information, transforming abstract or complex contents into more stable mental structures through an intrinsic multisensory dimension. Their genealogy, traced back to the classical tradition and the Greek formalization of the method of loci, has progressively integrated with psychological and neuroscientific contributions that describe memory as a dynamic process, supported by operations of deep processing, semantic categorization, and multimodal integration. On the basis of these premises, mnemonic techniques could be interpreted as vicarious teaching strategies in an inclusive perspective, capable of consciously exploiting the neural architecture involved in memorization processes. In presence of visual impairment, this perspective could take on a specific value. Indeed, the multisensory and associative component of mnemonic techniques could foster a reworking of mental representations beyond the visual channel, promoting recourse to alternative sensory modalities, in line with the concept of vicariance theorized by the neurophysiologist Alain Berthoz.

In light of this framework, the present contribution explores future support teachers’ perception regarding the didactic usefulness of mnemonic techniques in disciplines with high verbal and conceptual content, in students with visual impairment. The study involved 209 future support teachers, to whom a brief activity on memorization strategies was proposed, followed by a Likert questionnaire aimed at detecting their perception of didactic usefulness. Based on thematic analysis conducted in SPSS v. 25, results show that the sample involved indicates History as the discipline most able to the use of mnemonic strategies, followed by Geography and Literature. Geometry, Art History and Music, on the other hand, are among the least indicated.

Keywords:

Inclusive education, Mnemonic techniques, Visual impairment, Vicariance.