Metacognition

Today's Objectives

• Define metacognition
• Identify and practice various metacognitive activites
• Brainstorm metacognitive activities for my classroom

Today's Agenda

• What is metacognition?
• Reflective Practices
• Self-Regulation Practices
• Closing debrief

All resource links are pasted in the slide notes

METACOGNITION:
thinking about your thinking
(reflective practices)

2 types of metacognition: REFLECTION: “thinking about what we know"
SELF-REGULATION: “managing how we learn"

(Linda Darling-Hammond, 2003)

Metacognitive Activities

• identify prior knowledge
• explain and evaluate their learning
• transfer learning to other contexts

6 Strategies

Reflective Practices

• Pre-Assessments
• 3-2-1 Bridge
• Think Alouds
• Concept Mapping
• Self-Regulation Assessment
• Assessment "Wrappers"

but first!

"Research shows that even children as young as 3 benefit from metacognitive activities, which help them reflect on their own learning and develop higher-order thinking."

Model an Activity

At the end of today's session, you will brainstorm how to teach your students what metacognition is and why it is important.

#1. Pre-Assessment

Pre-Assessment

• Activate prior knowledge
• Identify misconceptions
• Previous challenges/successes
• Past experiences of content

Activity Options

• Quick survey
• Reflective writing
• Discussions and questioning

Quick Survey

• Raise your hand if today is the first time you have heard the term "metacognition"?

Quick Survey

• Raise your hand if you like to personally spend time reflecting on your life? (journaling, meditation, talk therapy, etc.)

Reflective Writing

• Think of a time in your classroom you asked students to reflect. What happened?
• What is easy/hard about asking students to reflect?
• What do you think could be a good time to include more reflection in your class?

"Take A Stand"

• Range of "agree" to "disagree" - no neutral
• Best with opinionated topics and vague statements
• Great way to engage students

Expectations

• Read the statement
• Silently pick the side that matches your opinion
• When directed, discuss your opinions with those next to you

I love reading books.

Students should not be assigned homework.

Practice!

Pre-Assessment

• Select a unit/topic you teach
• Brainstorm a metacognitive pre-assessment
• Example: 3-5 questions to assess prior knowledge

#2. 3-2-1 Bridge

3-2-1 Bridge

• Purpose: students uncover initial thoughts then connect to new learning
• Application: use to build and connect learning over time

3-2-1 Bridge

• 3 Thoughts
• 2 Questions
• 1 Analogy (___ is like...)
• before and after, plus a description of what changed

3-2-1 Bridge

#3. Think Alouds

Anytime YOU ‘think aloud’ about a book/problem and share your thinking process with students, you are helping them become more metacognitive in their own approaches to the subject.

THINK ALOUD:
Model for students how you would solve a problem or interpret a piece of writing, and then have students work in pairs to talk out loud as to how they are thinking about an assignment

#3. Think Alouds

• One student talks out loud while the partner records what they are saying. Partner also guides them to think through all the steps.
• Students switch roles and do the same for each other.

Practice!

Brainstorm a topic from your classroom. How could you utilize a 3-2-1 Bridge as part of that learning? When would that strategy be helpful? When would it not?

PARTNER UP and THINK ALOUD:
Brainstorm a topic from your classroom. How could you utilize a 3-2-1 Bridge as part of that learning? When would that strategy be helpful? When would it not?
SWAP PARTNERS AND REPEAT.

#4. Concept Mapping

#4. Concept Mapping

• "Making Thinking Visible"
• Mind-maps, brainstorm webs
• Tracking the flow of ideas

Concept Mapping

• Focus Question/Topic
• Key Concepts
• Organize, prioritize, build connections, explanations

Example "Map"

Practice!

Focus Topic:
Metacognitive Skills

Concept Mapping

• Topic: Metacognitive Skills
• Key Concepts: definitions, examples, activities, etc.
• Organize, prioritize, build connections, explanations

Break!

Before we move on, are there any clarifying questions from the first half of the session?

Self-Regulation

2 types of metacognition: REFLECTION: “thinking about what we know"
SELF-REGULATION: “managing how we learn"

(Linda Darling-Hammond, 2003)

"students in an introductory college statistics class who took a short online survey before each exam asking them to think about how they would prepare for it earned higher grades in the course than their peers—a third of a letter grade higher, on average."

Students often lack "awareness of how ill-prepared they are...they thought they understood the material better than they actually did."

"Metacognition helps students recognize the gap between being familiar with a topic and understanding it deeply."

5. Assess Self-Regulation

Assess Self-Regulation

• Complete the survey following the directions
• Ask for any clarifications on terms/definitions

Assess Self-Regulation

• Surface Approach
• Strategic Approach
• Deep Approach***

Teach students to constantly ask questions of themselves during the learning

Student Questions

• What are the main ideas of today's lesson?
• Was anything confusing/difficult?
• If something isn't making sense, what questions should I ask the teacher?
• Am I taking proper notes?
• What can I do if I get stuck?

Pre-Assessment

• What will be on the test?
• What do I struggle with?
• How much time should I set aside to prepare?
• Do I have the necessary materials and a place to study?
• What strategies will I use?

6. Assessment Wrappers

What's a "wrapper"?

• activity surrounding something pre-existing (lesson, homework, test)
• creates space for students to monitor their own learning

Wrappers

• time-efficient
• intentional metacognitive practice (mixing reflection and self-regulated thinking)
• quick feedback

Lesson Wrapper

• Prime students to topic ("3 main ideas")
• After teaching the content, give students time individually or in groups to process the content
• Teacher shares their 3 ideas
• Students compare lists, discuss similarities/differences

Homework Wrapper

• Students answer Qs about skill prior to assignment
• Students complete assignment
• Students answer Qs after assignment

Example Pre-assessment: "This homework is about fractions. How easily can you solve problems using fractions? How confident are you in being successful with the homework?

Example Post-assessment: "Now that you completed the homework, how easily can you solve problems using fractions? How confident are you in being successful with future homework and exams?

Exam Wrapper

• Students take exam normally
• Students complete "wrapper" after exam
• Teacher reviews exam and incorporates feedback/reteaching
• Students get "wrapper" back prior to next exam

Exam Wrapper Qs

• Preparation
• Performance
• Planning Next Steps

Preparation

• How did you prepare for the exam? What resources did you use?
• How and where did you study?
• What aspects of the content did you review most/least?

Performance

• How did your actual grade compare to the grade you expected? How do you explain the difference?
• Examine your correct/incorrect answers. What patterns do you notice?

Planning Next Steps

• What might you do differently to prepare for the next exam?
• What is your goal score for the next exam?
• How will you study to enable you to get that score?

Practice!

Brainstorm a lesson, homework assignment, or exam topic.
Create your own "wrapper" questions.

In Closing...

Any clarifying questions?

Brainstorm how to introduce metacognition to your students. How will you teach what it is and why it is important?