Learning schemata: methods of representing cognitive, content and curriculum structures in higher education

Abstract

Being able to represent knowledge is a key to being able to utilize it. Knowledge and skills have been represented in educational literature in three kinds of representations. The most frequently found kind is an individual learner's or an expert's cognitive structure. Cognitive structures may vary depending upon the method of analysis used to produce them, the degree of structure in the discipline, and the extent to which they are descriptive or goal oriented. Content structures, which are found in text or other learning material, are expected to meet the criterion of agreement within the discipline. Curriculum structures, which have been designed for the purpose of optimum learning, must take into account the criteria of sequence and continuity. Examination of the methods used to represent cognitive, content and curriculum structures leads to suggestions for their use in clarifying the learning task.