As an aid to increasing teacher effectiveness, this paper outlines findings derived from the field of cognitive psychology on the way in which memory operates, provides examples, and suggests a variety of ways the information can be applied in teaching. Among the findings cited are the following: (1) some types of information can be encoded (i.e., their meaning elucidated) faster than others; (2) information is more easily remembered in the context in which it was first learned; (3) items in the memory are linked together in networks and require "maps" to retrieve them; (4) information that is useful, necessary, or meaningful can be more easily retained than superfluous or irrelevant material; (5) people tend to set criteria to determine whether they understand something; (6) there are limits to short-term memory both in terms of time and capacity; and (7) items in the memory can be activated by recalling related words or concepts. The paper suggests that teachers can apply these findings by, for example, varying the speed at which different types of material are presented; associating concepts with surrounding sights, sounds, feelings, etc.; establishing relationships which link concepts and ideas together; "mapping out" lectures; giving students concrete examples and using mnemonic devices; getting students to test themselves; avoiding overload of the short-term memory; and reactivating students' memories by reviewing facts and concepts. (HB)