What term refers to a learner's existing attitudes and experiences relevant to new learning?

The term that refers to a learner's existing attitudes and experiences relevant to new learning is "prior knowledge." Prior knowledge encompasses everything a learner has already learned, experienced, and understood before encountering new information. This background can include personal experiences, previously acquired skills, or even cultural understandings that shape how new concepts are interpreted and assimilated.

When educators build upon a student's prior knowledge, they create a more effective learning environment, as this existing framework allows learners to connect new information to what they already know, thereby enhancing comprehension and retention. For instance, if a student has prior knowledge about a specific genre of literature, they will be better equipped to understand and analyze new texts within that genre.

This contrasts with context clues, which refer to hints found in the surrounding text that help determine the meaning of unfamiliar words. Literacy skills are the abilities associated with reading and writing, while internal representation pertains to how individuals mentally process and visualize concepts, rather than their actual prior experiences and attitudes related to learning.