By Rae Smith
Picture this: you’re standing at the starting line of the biggest 5k race of your life, but you were so nervous you forgot your running shoes. Now what do you do in this situation? You could always just put your Crocs into “sports mode,” but that probably wouldn’t end well. Instead, you may try to borrow a pair of shoes from a friend. What’s the first thing you would do before slipping them on? You will probably take a quick peek at the inside of the tongue to check the size label to see if they fit your feet. That’s your brain using a schema! “Schemas support memory and perception by providing an organizational framework within which we can encode and store relevant information and efficiently incorporate new information,” according to The National Library of Medicine. Just like making smart shoe decisions, schemas can help students of any age study and learn by providing a framework for organizing new information using what they already know. In this post, we’ll learn about schemas and how they can help you run the race toward academic success!
