Schema application
Wafaa334
EditedSchemafor111.pptx
Schema
Reading Across the Disciplines
Slideshows
These slideshows are designed to be watched on your own outside of class.
You select the appropriate show and complete the activities as you go through the slides.
To complete the activities, you will need to be prepared to take notes.
What is schema?
Schema is prior knowledge that instructs how you understand and react to new information. Without schema we don’t know what to make of new things or situations.
How do you build schema?
Assess your schema level for a reading. To do this you need to think about what you know about the topic. One way to do this is to use a KWL+ chart.
If your schema is low, determine what information you need to build it. Low schema can be a result of not having knowledge about the topic being discussed but it can also be because you are unfamiliar with the types of text. For example, research articles, poems, novels, or essays, makes it easier to understand a reading.
Do some research. You can do independent research, find an expert to talk to (like your instructor), or discuss the topic with others you know.
Step 1: Assess your schema level for a reading.
Review the “Schema” article.
If you have not read your ENGWR 300 assigned reading yet, begin by surveying. If you have read, skip to Step One for after Reading.
Remember to survey you will look over headings, subheadings, the first paragraph, first sentences in each subheading, and any closing information. If you need more of a review on how to survey, go to the Survey slideshow.
The schema assignment, asks you to create a KWL+ chart. If you have not done this, follow all the steps in the article to fill out the K and W column of a KWL+ chart. Use your survey to create good questions.
Modeling Assessing Schema
Example: The teacher has assigned “The Power of Habit.”
To begin, I survey the book. If a reading has a Table of Contents, it is a great place to assess schema. Do a metacognitive check assessing schema.
Metacognition Check: I think I will have medium schema for this book. I don’t know what many of the chapters refer to but in Psychology I did learn about habits so I have some prior knowledge.
The format also seems typical of texts I have read. Not like a novel but more like several articles.
Filling out the first two columns of a KWL+ chart
| K | W | L | + |
| I know about habits from Psych. They are hard to break. You have to basically reprogram your brain. I have seen this type of text before. | What is a habit loop? Do brains crave? What do they crave? What is the golden rule of habits? Why are the chapters so long? Are there lots of examples? Will I get bored? |
Step 1 for After Reading: Assess your schema level for a reading
If you have already done the reading assigned in ENGWR 300 but lacked comprehension, review the reading. If you were tracking focus, look for the check marks that show where you lost focus. If you did not track focus, you can still do a survey to find those low schema areas of the text. Within those areas, circle key words including people, places, or things that you don’t have any background knowledge on.
Modeling Assessing Schema (cont)
Metacognition Check: I lost focus twice. I think the first time was really due to boredom. The section felt long and I was getting tired at the end.
The next section, when I looked at where I lost focus, I circled unknown vocabulary and there was a lot. I will look up the words and reread.
Step 2: If your schema is low, determine what information you need to build it.
In the W column of the KWL+ chart, you highlighted questions you think you need answered to build your schema and understand your current reading assignment better. Then, next to the question, you wrote how you will find the answers--Google, library, instructor, etc.
| K | W |
| What is a habit loop? (Check Psych notes) Do brains crave? What do they crave? What is the golden rule of habits? Why are the chapters so long? Are there lots of examples? Will I get bored? |
Metacognition Check: I think most of my questions don’t have to be answered before I read. I think the chapters will answer them. I am going to look up information on habit loops though just to make sure that my memories from Psych are accurate.
Step 2 for after Reading: If your schema is low, determine what information you need to build it.
A lot of vocabulary was circled in the areas that I lost focus. I am going to look up the circled words, write the definitions in the margins, and then reread.
Step 3: Do some research.
Answer the questions you created with the method you decided on in the previous steps.
Look up words in the dictionary.
Google unknown places, time periods, organizational methods.
Talk to your instructor about sections of the reading you are confused about.
Step 4: Read, build schema, read, build schema
Schema building is usually a multi-stage process. It is ideal to build schema before you read but you may not know all of the information you need to build schema on so you will have to go through both the before reading and after reading steps.
Step 5: Did building schema help? If you are still having trouble focusing, think about why and what you want to work on next?
Did you do enough schema building? Continue to work on schema. That is often a major barrier to understanding a reading and sometimes you need to do a lot of schema building.
Was your schema low for the organization of the reading? Next class, let’s work on patterns of organization.
Do you feel like you understood the reading but can’t remember the information when you need it? Next class, let’s work on graphic organizers.
For your metacognitive check-in, think about which strategy above you might want to work on next.
