Scheme (Meaning and Explanation)

We explain what a scheme is, its characteristics, what types exist and examples. Also, learn what it is for and how to make a graphic diagram.

A diagram printed on paper. — Schemes allow you to organize ideas and concepts.

What is a scheme?

a scheme It is a graphic representation used to express the main concepts of a topic in order to understand or study them. It is usually done after reading a text and underlining its main ideas, and it is a simple and clear way to analyze and organize concepts through words and graphic resources.

In all schemes, It starts from a central concept. Lines, arrows, or other graphic marks show how main, secondary, or tertiary ideas or concepts are linked to the main topic and to each other. In this way, information is mentioned and represented in a structured way most important about a topic or a text.

The scheme It is a tool for studying and organizing information extremely useful, since it gives an overview of the topic to be studied through a synthesis and allows the reader to visually memorize the main ideas.

Characteristics of a schema

A scheme has the following characteristics:

Present information clearly and directly. Following a certain criterion, the information is organized in such a way that it can be interpreted simply and quickly.
Includes the fundamental concepts of a topic. It indicates which are the main concepts and, in some cases, also the secondary and tertiary ones.
Shows the relationship between the concepts. It is used to show the hierarchy between concepts, their order, their importance and their classifications.
Present information visually attractive. By including different resources, it shows the information in a striking and simple way, so that it can be assimilated by the reader effectively.
Serves as a study tool. Being a synthesis of a topic, a text, an exposition or a theory, it is an effective tool for understanding and studying.
Serves as support for exhibitions. It is used to hold exhibitions in educational, business and institutional settings.

Types of schemes and their examples

There are different types of schemes that vary in their design, size or the way in which the information is arranged. It is important to know them to choose the one that best suits the type and amount of material you are working with.

Key diagram or synoptic table

The key diagram or synoptic table Use braces or brackets to structure information in a hierarchical way and going from the general to the particular. Concepts can be organized from left to right or top to bottom.

It starts from a central theme and the main, secondary and tertiary ideas or concepts are contained in keys: the greater the number of keys, the greater the specification of the information. It is useful when the topic has many subdivisions.

Arrow scheme

The arrow scheme is similar to that of braces, but instead of using braces or brackets, arrows are used to organize information. Concepts can be arranged from left to right or sideways, so a large number of ideas and information can be included.

It starts from a central concept or theme from which arrows emerge that group the main ideas and, in turn, arrows emerge from the latter that encompass secondary ideas. In addition, you can add as many arrows, ideas and details as necessary.

Branched or tree scheme

The branched or tree scheme is based on a central concept or theme, of which The other ideas or concepts emerge according to their importance.

It is used to represent classifications or structures that have subtopics and several details or examples.

Flowchart

The flow chart, also called a flowchart, used to graph steps, activities, and decisions within a procedure.

The steps or decisions go within geometric figures, which have a specific meaning and are connected to each other by arrows that mark the direction of the procedure.

Development or numerical scheme

The development or numerical scheme is one that Using numbers or letters, points and indentations indicates the hierarchy of the concepts. It starts from a central theme or concept that functions as a title and then the main, secondary or tertiary ideas are added indicating their relevance and order.

It is frequently used to create indexes or lists that indicate the order of development of a topic, but its visual layout is not as well developed as that of other schemes.

Concept map

The concept map is a synthetic and simple scheme in which the main concepts of a topic are reflected, establishing a network based on the relationships that exist between them.

It differs from other schemes because the relationship between concepts prevails and has a structured formatsince it does not use varied graphic resources like the rest of the schemes. Furthermore, since linking words are placed on the lines, it allows the formation of propositions, that is, statements that describe the theme or central concept.

mind map

A mental map is a scheme that represents how concepts are linked, emulating the relationship they have in the mind.

It starts from a central concept of which, through lines shaped like neuronal dendrites, ideas emerge basic organizers or main concepts. In turn, from these main concepts, other lines can emerge that lead to secondary concepts.

semantic map

A semantic map is a diagram that shows concepts linked to a main theme or concept.

This link can be used to name a specific vocabulary or to indicate that other concepts are hierarchically subordinate to the central theme or concept.

Scheme or bar graph

A diagram or bar graph is one that represents how a variable is modified. It has two axes, one horizontal (x), in which the variables are indicated, and another vertical (y), in which the quantities that the variables can adopt are indicated.

The height of the bars shows the numerical quantity that the values of the variables acquire.

timeline

A timeline is a diagram in which the most important events of a topic are represented chronologically.

It has a horizontal axis on which the most relevant milestones of a period, an event or a person's life and the dates when they occurred are indicated.

How to make an outline?

When you must study a text, there are certain steps that are useful to make an outline of its content:

Read the writing comprehensively. In this first step, you read the entire text trying to identify what the theme or central concept is and what is said about it. Generally, the theme or central concept is indicated in the title.
Underline main ideas or concepts. The ideas of the text that allow us to understand the topic of study are highlighted; secondary, tertiary ideas or any data or concept that is deemed necessary can also be highlighted.
Choose keywords. From the main ideas, the most representative concepts (or short phrases) of the topic are obtained. Details should be omitted, since one of the fundamental characteristics of the outline is that it be synthetic and brief.
Determine what type of schema to use. Although there are preformatted schemes, this tool allows each person to adapt it to their preference and according to the topic of study. It is advisable to make your own outline (and not made by someone else) because the process of summarizing and organizing the information is beneficial for understanding and memorizing the topic.
Relate the ideas. It is recommended to take note of the ideas and the order in which they will be related or classified and then put them in the outline. In this step, a draft can be made to indicate what the structure of the outline will be like.
Graph the scheme. It is important to be clear about the order of the information and the content to include. In some cases, more than one diagram can be made to graph the different branches or subtopics within a broad or complex topic. It is usually useful to use capital letters to emphasize the fundamental concepts and lower case letters for the elements present in them. Certain graphic resources such as boxes, lines, arrows, keys, letters or bars can be included in the diagram to facilitate its assembly and understanding.

Advantages and disadvantages of a scheme

The schemes present a series of advantages:

They synthesize a lot of information in very little space.
They allow the compression and memorization of content to be studied to be simpler processes.
They are useful to show how the ideas and concepts of a topic are ordered and classified.
They facilitate the development of criteria that allow us to distinguish what information is relevant and what is not.
They allow you to quickly understand and analyze the structure of a topic or concept.

But the schemes also present disadvantages:

They can take a long time.
They can produce conceptualization or classification errors if done poorly.
They are not always enough to study, since in some cases a summary or explanation may be needed.

References

García-Huidobro Barros, C., Gutiérrez Gutiérrez, MC and Condemarín Grimberg, E. (1997). You learn to study: Study methodology session by session. Catholic University of Chile Editions.
Guerra Reyes, F., Carrascal Albán, R. and Gort Almeida, A. (2016). Graphic organizers: basic elements and procedures for their design. Echoes of the North Technical Academy-University, 2(04), 53-75.
Guerra Reyes, F. (2019). Main graphic organizers used by university teachers: a constructivist strategy. Research and postgraduate, 34(2), 99-118.
Peña González, J. (2013). The scheme. A study and learning strategy. Educere, 17(57), 245-252.
Royal Spanish Academy. (2023). Scheme. Dictionary of the Spanish language. https://dle.rae.es/
Sánchez, J. and Maldonado, MA (2016). How to learn more by studying less. De Vecchi.