Texas PPR (Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities) Practice Test

What concept refers to mental patterns that guide behavior and help students process and organize information to make sense of their environment?

1. Formal Operational (Piaget)

2. Psychological Constructivism

3. Schemas

4. Social Constructivism

The correct answer is: Schemas

The concept that refers to mental patterns guiding behavior and helping students process and organize information is schemas. Schemas are cognitive frameworks that help individuals categorize and interpret information based on their past experiences and knowledge. They enable students to make sense of new experiences by relating them to what they already know, which is essential for learning and comprehension. In educational contexts, recognizing and activating students' existing schemas can enhance learning by allowing students to build upon their prior knowledge. This process of connecting new information to established mental frameworks makes it easier for them to integrate and retain new concepts and ideas. The other options relate to different educational theories and frameworks but do not specifically encompass the notion of cognitive organizing patterns. For instance, the formal operational stage pertains to cognitive development in children as per Piaget, and the constructs of psychological and social constructivism focus on collaborative and contextual aspects of learning rather than the mental organization of knowledge.