Metacognition in Middle School - Theory and Application
Introduction
Imagine a middle school student, Emma, who spends hours studying for her exams but still struggles to remember the material when test day arrives. Despite her hard work, her grades don’t reflect her efforts, leaving her frustrated and demotivated. This is a common issue many students face. What if there was a way to help students like Emma not just study harder, but smarter? Enter metacognition—the awareness and control of one’s own thinking and learning processes.
John Flavell, a renowned developmental psychologist, introduced the term "metacognition" in 1976. He described it as the ability to think about one’s own thinking, be consciously aware of oneself as a problem solver, monitor, plan, and control one’s mental processing, and accurately judge one’s level of learning.
Understanding Metacognition
Metacognition involves several key components:
Awareness of one’s own thinking: Understanding what you know and what you don’t know.
Problem-solving: Being able to apply strategies to solve problems effectively.
Monitoring: Continuously checking your progress as you learn.
Planning: Strategizing how to approach a learning task.
Evaluating: Judging the effectiveness of your learning strategies and adjusting them as needed.
Benefits of Metacognition for Students
Supporting the development of metacognition is a powerful way to promote student success at all levels. Students with strong metacognitive skills are positioned to learn more and perform better than their peers who are still developing their metacognition. For example, a student with well-developed metacognition can identify concepts they do not understand and select appropriate strategies for learning those concepts. They know how to implement strategies they have selected and carry out their overall study plan. They can evaluate their strategies and adjust their plans based on outcomes.
Modeling Metacognitive Strategies
As educators, you engage in metacognitive thinking all the time: reflecting on your current understanding, assessing what the burning questions are, and considering how your thinking has changed over the years with new information. Your students need to see and hear this process from you! Demonstrating how you solve a problem—how you start, how you decide what to do first and then next, how you check your work, and how you know when you’re done—is all part of metacognitive modeling.
Dr. Kimberly Tanner from San Francisco State University has produced quality resources on promoting metacognition within the teaching environment. In her 2012 article, she provided sample self-questions for faculty to promote metacognition about their own teaching practices. You can share this process with your students to directly model metacognition or use these self-questions to be more aware of the metacognitive processes, ultimately helping you understand this concept better and positively impacting your students.
Pre/Post Assessments
Pre-assessment can be incredibly helpful for the learner and is a wonderful opportunity for promoting metacognition among students. For example, asking, “What do I already know about this topic that would guide my learning?” transforms a simple pre-assessment prompt into a metacognitive exercise. This could be a short addition to a homework assignment or a question on an index card at the beginning of class.
Similarly, post-assessment tools like “exam wrappers” can be valuable. After an exam, students might answer questions such as: When did you start preparing for the exam? How did you prepare? What types of questions were most challenging for you and why? What will you do differently for your next exam? Whether written or oral, these reflections provide the much-needed evaluation that is key to developing strong metacognitive skills.
Integrating Metacognitive Prompts into Course Activities
Here are three styles of metacognitive prompts educators can utilize in their classrooms:
Pair or Group Discussions: Direct students to answer a question about the course content. Then, in pairs or groups, have them share how they thought about what the question was asking, the process they used to arrive at an answer, and the main reason for choosing that answer. This allows them to hear and discuss how their ideas compare with their peers’ ideas.
Active-Learning Tasks: Use tasks like case studies, concept maps, and problem sets, followed by reflection. For example, ask students to pose three questions they still cannot answer about the concepts explored in the assignment. Or, ask them to describe two ideas related to the assignment that they found confusing. Another prompt could be, “How was the way you approached this assignment different from the last one? What advice would you give yourself if you were starting this assignment over?”
Exam Preparation: Use prompts to get students to plan for studying: How do you plan to prepare for the upcoming exam? Why? What resources are available to support you? What concepts have you found most confusing? What concepts have been most clear? Given that, how should you spend your study time?
Bonus Tips for Encouraging Metacognition
Encourage a Spaced Practice Schedule: Many students do not use a spaced practice schedule, which involves studying the same content in two or more sessions spaced across time. Spaced practice is essential for mastering difficult course content. Encourage students to use a weekly calendar to schedule multiple study sessions, where each session involves studying recent material and practicing earlier content.
Use Practice Questions: Develop practice questions (low- or no-stakes) to help students monitor their learning. These questions allow students to test their knowledge and receive feedback, which can boost retention and help them better learn the content.
Visual Aids
Incorporate visual aids like diagrams, charts, or infographics to break up the text and provide visual learners with additional support. For example, a metacognitive process chart or a sample exam wrapper can help students visualize these strategies.
Resource Section
For further reading and resources, consider exploring the following:
"How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School" by the National Research Council.
Articles by Dr. Kimberly Tanner on metacognition in teaching.
Websites like Edutopia and the Learning Scientists, which offer valuable insights into metacognitive strategies.
Conclusion
Metacognition is a powerful tool that can transform the learning experience for students. By integrating metacognitive strategies into your teaching practices, you can help students become more aware of their thinking processes, better plan and evaluate their learning strategies, and ultimately achieve greater academic success. Encourage your students to think about their thinking, and watch them reach new heights in their educational journey.
