In the context of “absurd abbreviations”, the letters in the pseudoword knowall stand for:
- K – What do I know already
- W – What do want to learn (more about)
- L – What have I learned
The abbreviation knowitall adds two extra ideas:
- K – What do I know already
- W – What do want to learn (more about)
- I – How do I want to learn
- L – What have I learned
- L – Evaluation
An important goal of this learning strategy is that you reflect on what you already know, and on what you want to learn. A knowall or knowitall sheet does not have to be complete; it should help you take ownership of your own learning.
It is an advantage to want to learn something yourself, rather than wanting to do what others tell you to do.
By thinking about your starting point, what you want to achieve, and how you will achieve it, it becomes easier along the way to check whether you are on the right track, with the right method and the right tools. That can save you a lot of lost time that you can then use for other things.
So the evaluation can usefully happen while you are in the middle of learning, and you can swap the learning strategies you are using if you need to. The sheet itself is only an *aid*; you can update it as you go, to keep an overview of how far you have come.
Knowall is based on KWL, as developed by Donna Ogle in 1986. The page Learning strategies with RTTI also mentions KWL.