Prior Knowledge In Learning

Topic: The role of learner prior knowledge in the learning of school science

1. Introduction

Prior knowledge is defined as a multidimensional and hierarchical entity that is dynamic in nature and consists of different types of knowledge and skills. It acts as mental hooks for the lodging of new information and is the basic building block of content and skill knowledge. Prior knowledge has long been considered as the most important factor that influences learning and student achievement. The amount and quality of prior knowledge can positively influence both knowledge acquisition and the capacity to apply problem-solving skills. Children entering school already have substantial knowledge of the natural world, much of which is implicit. Contrary

The terms are used synonymously since they mean essentially the same thing. Some simply define prior knowledge as what a person already knows about the content (Marzano, 2004; Stevens, 1980) while others have more complex definitions. For example, Biemans and Simons (1996) conceive of prior knowledge as “all knowledge learners have when entering a learning environment that is potentially relevant for acquiring new knowledge (p. 6). Dochy and Alexander (1995) go further by claiming that prior knowledge is the whole of a person’s knowledge, including explicit and tacit knowledge, metacognitive and conceptual

Leach & Scott (2003) states that students come to science classrooms with a range of strongly held personal science views. So, to prepare their instructions teachers should have insights about students ' prior knowledge, which are information about students ' characteristic ways of thinking and talking about the world. Student performance improves when instructions are designed to deal with specific difficulties revealed in studies of students ' prior knowledge. Savinainen & Scott (2002) justify that neglection of prior knowledge can result in students learning that is something opposed to the teacher 's intentions, no matter how well those intentions are executed in his/her teaching practices. Therefore, in order to teach science successfully in classroom, teachers should be aware of what students’ prior knowledge is, how it affects science learning, and how they make the best use of it in their teaching practices.

1.1 Justification

The most important factor in developing an integrated knowledge framework is to create a learning environment in which learning means actively constructing knowledge and skills on the basis of prior knowledge. Trying to learn something without having adequate prior knowledge