Bartlett's main contribution is probably represented by the
italicized parts of the above quotation, that is, his pointing out that
schemata operate as a 'unitary mass', and that schemata are 'active'
and 'always operating' in orderly behavior. In other words, we do not
go around reinterpreting the world every time we need to respond to a
given situation. We answer to most everyday situations more or less
analogically and automatically, in terms of the knowledge that we have,
which has been accumulated by the 'active organization of [our] past
reactions'. Like Kant, Bartlett did not attempt to explore the structure
of schemata: he stayed within the realm of effects of mental patterns.
Another early appearance of the notion of schema is in Piaget's
theory of learning. As Clark (1975:312) puts it,