Joyce VanTassel-BaskaCollege of William and Mary

What is metacognition?

The ability to reflect on thinking, The ability to plan, monitor, and

assess one’s own learning, and The ability to focus on the whole of

an experience and understand how it changed you.

Why teach metacognition?

To enhance long term learning

To develop self efficacy in learners

To enhance skills necessary for collaborative project work

Research base

Gifted learners typically are stronger in metacognition than others (Shore et al., 2000)

Metacognition strengthens learning, especially in math and science (National Research Council, 2002)

Metacognition enhances connected learning needed in research and other project endeavors (Boyce et al. 1997)

Models for TeachingMetacognition

The Need To Know Board

What do we know?What do we need to know?How are we going to find

out? What have we learned?

Problem Logs

Why did the experiment not work? What could I have done differently? How do I assess my skills in scientific

investigation? Which ones will require me to practice

more?

Journaling

Reflect on your role as a scientist in the unit Budding Botanists. What skills have you acquired? What beliefs do you hold about science in our world? What do you understand about problem solving in the real world?

Questions for reflection

So what? Why does it matter? How does the learning fit with

yesterday’s? What new understanding do you

have about…? How can I do better?

Independent Learning Models What is my plan to improve?

How will I know I am making progress?

What outcome do I want to reach?

What is my timeline? Intermediary steps?

The Teacher’s Role in Metacognition Question asker Coach Provider of scaffolds for thinking Assessor of meaningful progress and

provider of suggestions for improvement

The Role of the Student in Metacognition

Self-monitoring performance with an intent to self-assess

Recognizing gaps in knowledge and setting up learning agendas to fill them

Identifying needed learning resources Identifying skills needed to use resources wisely and well

Sorting through information to determine relevancy

Identifying biases and limitations

The goal is self-directed learning in students and

ourselves!Reflecting on one’s

thinking allows us to resee problems, to formulate new solutions, and to revise and improve our thinking and our actions.