WILL THAT BE ON THE EXAM - SCHEMA THEORY AND TESTING IN SOCIOLOGY

Frustration with the students' question ''Will that be on the exam?'' often signals a disparity between what we as teachers believe is impor tant and what we test for on examinations. Although clarifying our obj ectives is often presented as a way of addressing this disparity, this is easier in theory than in practice. Most discussions of objectives are quite abstract, suggest an additive, linear understanding of learn ing, and present a false dichotomy between content and skills. Schema theory can help us overcome these limitations by recasting objectives in terms of active learning outcomes. An extended example of this appr oach is discussed.