PORTFOLIO
Beginning with Students' Schema
Enable Educatino: Minds Enabled. Retrieved from http://enableeducation.com/blog/renewing-passion-for-learning-going-back-to-the-beginning/#.VQpJskJrj4Q
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On the left is a photo of a young child having the standard "light bulb moment". This trope establishes that knowledge is something that comes from outside of us and lands above our heads to illuminate a certain truth or concept. While there is nothing wrong with viewing light as a metaphor for knowledge, this particular picture paints knowledge as a purely external thing. On the other hand, the image on the bottom left depicts knowledge as a purely internal thing that exists in the mind of every individual person. However, if the creation of knowledge is purely internal, then the purpose of teaching novel information is illegitimate.
Instead, I prefer to view the creation of knowledge as an ongoing relationship between novel information and our previous understandings. This is represented by the photo on the right, which depicts the external knowledge as the light bulb, but also depicts the source of light as the wire. In this example, the knowledge is still depicted as a light bulb, however it is also grounded in our prior knowledge and experiences.
The term schema refers to the collection of prior knowledge and experiences that each person carries with them. Many policy documents, including the Secondary English Language Arts Program of Studies and the Teaching Effectiveness Framework outline the importance of first determining what a teacher's students already know. By beginning with students' schema, teaching can be effective because it allows students to make meaningful connections to their own lives.
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