Global Journal on Advances in Pure & Applied Sciences Issue 1 (2013) 17-24 Selected Paper of 1st Global Conference on Environmental Studies (CENVISU-2013), 24-27 April 2013, Zeynep Sentito Hotel, Belek, Antalya, Turkey The impact of environmental noise on children’s memory: Are children’s memory capacities more resilient than we think? Kate Cockcroft * , Department of Psychology, School of Human and Community Development, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. Joseph Seabi, Department of Psychology, School of Human and Community Development, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. Paul Goldschagg, Department of Geography, School of Education, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. Michael Greyling, Department of Psychology, School of Human and Community, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. Suggested Citation: Cockcroft, K., Seabi, J., Goldschagg, P. & Greyling, M. The impact of environmental noise on chil dren’s memory: Are children’s memory capacities more resilient than we think? , Global Journal on Advances in Pure & Applied Sciences [Online]. 2013, 01, pp 17-24. Available from: http://www.world-education- center.org/index.php/paas Received November 18, 2012; revised January 13, 2013; accepted March 07, 2013. Selection and peer review under responsibility of Dr. Nehir Varol . ©2013 Academic World Education & Research Center. All right s reserved. Abstract Problem statement: In South Africa, many schools are situated in noisy locations and the effect on the developing child’s learning processes warrant investigation. Listening under noisy conditions is more effortful, requiring more cognitive resources. Children may be more vulnerable to the negative impact of noise than adults, because children’s understanding of speech in noisy environments only reaches adult levels in the late teens. Children may have reduced capacities to anticipate the impact of noise, as well underdeveloped coping repertoires for dealing with noisy environments. Research has focused on adults, with the majority being laboratory based. In such studies, participants are only exposed to noise for short durations, limi ting their generalisation to individuals exposed to chronic noise. Purpose of study: This study investigated the effect of airport noise on children’s memory functioning in their school environment. Methods: The sample comprised 820 children from schools located near an international airport. Schools were selected by extent of exposure to aircraft noise determined from on-site noise measurements, and were classified as “noisy” or “quiet”. Several memory systems were assessed using standardized measures: epi sodic memory (free and cued recall), working *ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE: Kate Cockcroft, Department of Psychology, School of Human and Community Development, University of the Witwatersrand, P.O WITS 2050, Johannesburg, South Africa. E-mail address: kate.cockcroft@wits.ac.za / Tel : +27117174511, Fa x:+27865534904