Ch 8: Owning Our Learning Experiences

Owning Our Learning Experiences

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Learning ObjectivesAfter reading this chapter, you should be able to do the following:

Describe metacognition and how it is developed. Explain strategies that can be used to support metacognitive development. Identify challenges of measuring metacognition in aging populations. Explain the relationship between metacognition and self-regulated learning. Describe self-regulated learning strategies.

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Introduction Previous sectionNext section

IntroductionHave you ever:

set personal goals for a long- or short-term project? reflected on the best strategies and steps to accomplish your goals? identified behaviors that were hindering successful knowledge acquisition? adjusted information to better fit your learning preferences? evaluated your personal strategies for learning?

These questions represent how an awareness of one’s own learning can be used to support knowledge acquisition. They highlight the roles of self-analysis and self-correction in the process for increased learning success, which is addressed in discussions about metacognition and self-regulation. Research has suggested that each of these variables supports the processes for increased awareness of our own abilities, needs, and subsequent successes. Metacognition is the ability to be aware of and regulate one’s thought processes. Self-regulation is the process of monitoring and managing one’s thoughts and behaviors and, as mentioned in Chapter 5, is a key variable associated with some motivational theories. As these two definitions suggest, metacognition and self-regulation are intertwined in that one must first develop an honest self-awareness, before successful self-monitoring can take place. For example, when one begins to learn something new, it is important to reflect on one’s goals and what variables might affect the process and one’s subsequent success. Some people might find that sounds are distracting when they are working. Others might find it difficult to remember verbal instructions and are more comfortable with written guidance. In both of these examples, if the learners are more aware of what they can do to support their personal success (e.g., studying in a quiet area or reading through documented instructions), then they can increase their likelihood of successful knowledge acquisition.

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Do you regularly use a planner or organizer to remember due dates and future events or to keep track of a to-do list? Do you learn more effectively in a quiet or a busy environment? Tracking how you learn, remember information, or regulate your time is important for developing self-awareness skills.

Steiner (2014) has indicated that a successfully self-aware adult learner is one who:

has an independent self-concept; can direct their own learning; has accumulated a reservoir of life experiences that can be a resource;

has learning needs closely related to changing social roles; is problem-centered and interested in immediate application of knowledge; and is internally, rather than externally, motivated to learn. (para. 2)

If one does not have self-awareness skills, thinking can be distorted by self-deception—a thought process that can lead to misinformation, which can create miscommunications and inaccurate learning. Adults with less developed self-awareness can often display self-deception. (See Applying Skeptical Inquiry: Self-Deception to learn more about self-deception studies conducted by Dr. Cortney Warren.) This distorted thinking negatively affects cognitive awareness, causing individuals to potentially avoid negative feelings and emotions. A lack of self-awareness can affect one’s behaviors and often leads to feedback avoidance, which then affects what is attended to during information processing (Steiner, 2014). In addition, this distorted thinking can support the development of inaccurate memories. (Remember the discussion about false memory development in Chapter 3?) It’s easy to say that we are self-aware, but, as you read this chapter, you might find that true self-awareness is more complex.

How self-aware do you think you are? Are you self-aware in every area of your life and regarding all your behaviors? Self-awareness is a concept that may be more difficult to accommodate to your own knowledge about learning because it directly affects, and questions, your current mindsets. But if we are more aware of our metacognition and self-regulation processes, we can begin to understand how these areas can affect successful knowledge acquisition.

The topics covered in this chapter will also help you put the information provided in the previous chapters into perspective, elaborating on how learners can improve their learning efficiency. In the previous chapters, you discovered that associations, responses to stimuli, memory development, cognitive processes, emotions, our attentiveness, our learning preferences, and even intelligence (IQ, EI, and MI) can all affect how we learn and how we learn most effectively. Prior discussions have even mentioned specific connections to self-awareness (sections 2.3, 2.4, 5.4, 6.3, and 7.3), metacognition (5.1, 5.4, and 6.3), and self-regulation (sections 5.1, 5.4, 7.1, and 7.3). However, knowing how to blend these ideas into learning strategies can be more difficult. The topics in this chapter will help you improve your understanding and application of metacognition and self-regulation. An increased awareness about how you think, what you know, and what you have learned will help you apply information about learning to your personal and professional life in a more effective and fulfilling way.

Applying Skeptical Inquiry: Self-DeceptionDr. Cortney Warren, the author of Lies We Tell Ourselves: The Psychology of Self-Deception (2014), discusses an interesting perspective, explaining how and why humans lie to themselves. The content suggests that recognizing and acknowledging our self-deceptive tendencies can help us change and grow—to take responsibility for our actions and make better choices. This awareness can also influence your goals to become a metacognitive and self-regulated learner. Watch Dr. Warren’s TEDx Talk, “Honest Liars—The Psychology of Self-Deception,” to learn more about self-deception.

https://youtu.be/YpEeSa6zBTE

Questions1. Does Dr. Warren’s talk induce any “aha” moments when you reflect on your own self-

talk? Your own rationales?2. Do you have behaviors that are consistent or inconsistent with something you learned as a

child?

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8.1 Metacognition Previous sectionNext section

8.1 MetacognitionHave you ever intentionally wondered about how you think, process, or strategize? If so, you have been applying metacognition, a key component for becoming a self-regulated learner (Harris & Graham, 1999; Schraw, Crippen, & Hartley, 2006; Zimmerman, 2002; Zimmerman, Bonner, & Kovach, 2002). The word metacognition is composed of two parts: meta- and cognition. Meta- has numerous meanings, but in this case, it refers to an acute analysis of something; cognition refers to the process of knowledge acquisition involving thoughts, experiences, and senses (which we discussed in Chapters 2, 3, and 4). Thus, metacognition represents thinking about thinking at a deeper, more critical level.

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Evaluating how you learned and processed certain information or a specific task is using metacognition.

Flavell (1976) defined metacognition broadly as “one’s knowledge concerning one’s own cognitive processes or anything related to them” (p. 232). When an individual is applying metacognition successfully, this suggests that he or she is exercising an awareness and management of his or her own cognitive processes. When a person manages his or her cognitive processing, which may include awareness of performance or the application of strategies, he or she is applying metacognitive regulation. For example, when members of a football team view a video of the previous night’s game, they often critically consider what they did well, what should be improved, and what did not work at all, so that the team can improve its performance at the next game. The same could be said about other learning contexts. When a person performs a learned task and considers what processes were applied, what was successful or not successful, and which strategies did not work, these analyses provide the learner with opportunities to determine what he or she can do to more effectively support his or her learning outcomes.

You can use these descriptions of metacognition to hypothesize about what learners can do to be more aware of their own metacognitions. What does it mean to be aware? How can learners become more knowledgeable about how they utilize attention, memory, perception, and thinking when learning? For example, if you noticed that you had more difficulty understanding the information about cognitivism than behaviorism, then you are applying metacognition. Or maybe you noticed that the presence of background noise while you were reading the content about cognitivism negatively affected the attention you needed to retain the information that you were reading. This is also an example of metacognition. However, research has suggested that such metacognitive judgments, or personal evaluations of one’s own learning, can be inaccurate at times (Kratzig & Arbuthnott, 2006). Thus, skeptical inquiry about metacognition, with an acute awareness of possible self-deceptions, and how it does or does not support effective learning is essential. (Dr. Saundra McGuire provides a brief description of metacognition in Reinforcing Your Understanding: Thinking About Thinking.)

Over the last decade, researchers have studied the use of metacognition in many domains, such as academic performance (Coutinho, 2008), child development (Wellman, 1985), and nursing management (Jang, Ryu, Kim, Chung, & Kim, 2007). The series of excerpts in this section is from Darling-Hammond, Austin, Cheung, and Martin (2016). These authors further explain the concept of metacognition and discuss two distinct areas: metacognitive regulation and metacognitive knowledge. In addition, they explain how metacognition relates to learning and the strategies that can be employed to support our learning.

Reinforcing Your Understanding: Thinking About ThinkingDr. Saundra McGuire, vice chancellor for learning, teaching, and retention at Louisiana State University, discusses metacognition. She explains what it is, why it is important, and how to use the strategy of metacognition, which allows you to analyze what you’re doing and how you’re thinking about it, in your own knowledge acquisition.

https://youtu.be/P_b44JaBQ-Q

Excerpts from “Thinking About Thinking: Metacognition”

By L. Darling-Hammond, K. Austin, M. Cheung, and D. Martin

“Going Meta”[. . .] Simply put, metacognition means “thinking about one’s own thinking.” There are two aspects of metacognition: (1) reflection—thinking about what we know, and (2) self-regulation—managing how we go about learning. Taken together, these processes make up an important aspect of learning and development. Developing these metacognitive abilities is not simply about becoming reflective learners, but about acquiring specific learning strategies as well.

Research has shown that one of the key traits good problem-solvers possess is highly developed metacognitive skills. They know how to recognize flaws or gaps in their own thinking, articulate their thought processes, and revise their efforts (Brown, Bransford, Ferrara, & Campione, 1983). As adults, we actively engage in these skills in our everyday thinking. We decide what method to use to solve a problem or when to ask for help. We use metacognitive skills to help us decide which elements we understand and which we do not understand. In short, we direct our own learning. Students and novices often lack these skills or fail to recognize when to use them (Flavell & Wellman, 1977). As educators, it is important for us to help foster the development of metacognitive skills in students. These are skills that will help students learn how to learn.

Sometimes people use the phrase “going meta” when talking about metacognition, referring to the process of stepping back to see what you are doing, as if you were someone else observing it. “Going meta” means becoming an audience for your own performance—in this case, your own intellectual performance. When a person is learning to play golf, for example, seeing a videotape of her own swing can help her to understand what she is doing well and what she is doing poorly. Typically, we do not know what we are doing when we do it, but it is very hard to improve a process that we are engaged in if we do not have a sense of what we are doing in the moment. Even a skilled professional ballet dancer relies on mirrors to help him understand what he looks like and what he is doing as he dances. He has to be able to see his performance as others might see it before he can begin to improve it. The ability to view our own performance is particularly useful when we learn physical skills. However, cognitive work is often invisible and cannot be directly observed.

How do we help students become thoughtful about their own performance as they are learning to reason about mathematics and history? The challenge is helping students learn how to “go meta” in regard to thought processes that are not directly visible in order to improve their cognitive performances. [. . .]

Early Ideas About MetacognitionAlthough the word metacognition did not come into common use until the 1970s, when it was introduced by psychologist John Flavell, the notion of reflecting about one’s thinking can be found in writings dating back to Plato, who emphasized the importance of reflecting through dialogue. John Dewey, often considered the father of progressive education, viewed reflection as a central part of active learning. Dewey observed:

As long as our activity glides smoothly along from one thing to another . . . there is no call for reflection. Difficulty or obstruction in the way of reaching a belief brings us, however, to a pause. In the suspense of uncertainty, we metaphorically climb a tree; we try to find some standpoint from which we may survey additional facts and, getting a more commanding view of the situation, decide how the facts stand related to one another. (Dewey, 1933, p. 14)

Both Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky described the role of metacognition in cognitive development. In his research with 7- to 11-year-olds, Piaget demonstrated children’s ability to verbalize the processes they used in completing a task and the ways in which they were aware of their thinking. He called this awareness “consciousness of cognizance,” which maps closely to

our notion of metacognition. Vygotsky further explored these ideas in his research about the child’s “inner voice,” or the process of verbalizing internal thoughts as a way to make sense of something. Articulating internal thoughts out loud not only helps a student learn, but can demonstrate an awareness of the learning process—both important aspects of metacognition as we define it today. [. . .]

Two Components of MetacognitionMetacognition is most commonly broken down into two distinct but interrelated areas. John Flavell, one of the first researchers in metacognition and memory, defined these two areas as metacognitive knowledge—awareness of one’s thinking—and metacognitive regulation—the ability to manage one’s own thinking processes. These two components are used together to inform learning theory.

Metacognitive Knowledge—Reflecting on What We Know

Students have thoughts, notions, and intuitions about their own knowledge and thinking. Flavell (1979) describes three kinds of metacognitive knowledge:

Awareness of knowledge—understanding what one knows, what one does not know, and what one wants to know. (“I know that I understand that plants need sunlight but I do not know why.”) This category may also include an awareness of others’ knowledge. (“I know that Sarah understands long division, so I’ll ask her to explain this problem to me.”)

Awareness of thinking—understanding cognitive tasks and the nature of what is required to complete them. (“I know that reading this newspaper article will be easier for me than reading my textbook.”)

Awareness of thinking strategies—understanding approaches to directing learning. (“I am having difficulty reading this article. I should summarize what I just read before going on.”) [. . .]

Metacognitive Regulation—Directing Our Learning

When a student has information about her thinking (metacognitive knowledge), she is able to use this information to direct or regulate her learning. This kind of metacognition is also referred to as executive control. Just as a business executive manages and oversees activities in a company, executive control can be thought of as managing and overseeing one’s own thinking. For example, if an individual who performs poorly on a task evaluates his or her behaviors to understand why the desired result was not achieved, then he or she could use this analysis to create a plan to improve the behaviors.

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A student who reflects on what she learned or how she performed on an exam could use metacognitive regulation to determine her next steps. For example, if she failed an exam, she could hire a tutor or carve out more study time to better prepare for the next test.

Metacognitive regulation involves the ability to think strategically and to problem solve, plan, set goals, organize ideas, and evaluate what is known and not known. It also involves the ability to teach to others and make the thinking process visible.

Ann Brown and her colleagues (1983) describe three ways we direct our own learning:

Planning approaches to tasks—identifying the problem, choosing strategies, organizing our thoughts, and predicting outcomes;

Monitoring activities during learning—testing, revising, and evaluating the effectiveness of our strategies; and

Checking outcomes—evaluating the outcomes against specific criteria of efficiency and effectiveness.

Learning how to be mindful of one’s process and how to think strategically about a task can make problem solving more efficient. The strategic essay writer knows how to plan his central thesis and supporting points, rather than simply writing thoughts in a stream of consciousness, just as the strategic mathematics student is able to step back and consider different approaches to a problem, rather than trying all the possible numbers that might give a correct answer. Such learners are accustomed to monitoring their work as they are working: “Am I making my points clear and understandable?” “Am I getting closer to a solution or farther away?” They also look back on their work to evaluate their own success: “Have I convinced my reader?” “Does this solution make sense?” Learning how to monitor one’s own thinking process can enable the learner to self-correct, rather than always relying on others to be the audience and sounding board for one’s work. [. . .]

Good metacognitive thinkers are also good intentional learners. That is, they are able to direct their learning in the proper ways to build understanding. They know when to use strategies and how to use them (Bereiter & Scardamalia, 1989). They are able to redirect the normal frustration that occurs when things are confusing or are not initially productive into further learning and research strategies. Teachers can help students become intentional learners by helping them manage uncertainty, redirect their efforts productively, and persevere when they get frustrated. Teachers can do this by modeling and discussing aloud their thinking process when they themselves approach uncertain tasks (“I am thinking I could try this approach or that approach. Let’s see what happens if I try this one”), as well as what they do when they hit a snag or dead end. They can also monitor students as they work to catch them at points when they need encouragement or are becoming frustrated and need a new strategy. The ability to work strategically can be taught and must be learned if students are to succeed at being self-directed learners throughout their lives. [. . .]

Strategies for LearningTo have increased success, students must become more aware about how to incorporate active reflection in their learning. They must observe and scaffold the processes of reflection, questioning, evaluating, and other thinking strategies that may not come naturally. The strategies below include opportunities to reflect on learning and to learn to regulate or direct one’s work:

Predicting outcomes—Predicting helps learners to better understand what kinds of information they might need to successfully solve a problem. Prediction also helps learners compare their initial thoughts with the final outcomes of a problem or experiment.

Evaluating work—Learners should review their work and determine where the strengths and weaknesses are in their work and their thinking. [. . .]

Self-assessing—Learners should reflect on their learning and determine how well they have learned something or how their skills have developed.

Self-questioning—Learners should use questions to check their own knowledge as they are learning. When they have learned to ask questions (of themselves or of others) while they work, they intentionally direct their thinking and clarify the areas where they need assistance.

Selecting strategies—Learners should determine which strategies are useful for a given task. Strategy selection may depend on understanding one’s own learning style and strengths as well as understanding the features of a problem.

Using directed or selective thinking—Learners should choose consciously to follow a specific line of thinking or structured approach in order to find an answer.

Using discourse—Learners should discuss ideas with each other and their teacher, trainer, or mentor. This process makes thinking more concrete and helps them to learn to ask questions, identify gaps in their own knowledge, and learn from others’ thoughts and ideas.

Critiquing—Learners should provide feedback to their peers about their work in a constructive way. This process allows those who are giving feedback to practice verbalizing their own thinking and those who are receiving feedback to improve their own thinking process and performance.

Revising—Learners should return to their work after receiving feedback. This opportunity allows them to update their thinking and to check their use of learning strategies. [. . .]

Source: Darling-Hammond, L., Austin, K., Cheung, M., & Martin, D. (2016). Thinking about thinking: Metacognition. The Learning Classroom: Theory Into Practice. Used with permission by Annenberg Learner: www.learner.org

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One way to increase success in learning is to instigate or participate in discussion, whether it’s with classmates, a teacher, coworkers, or family members. Asking questions and gaining insights from different people can help a person discover something new or change the way he or she thinks about a topic.

A deeper understanding of metacognition can help us better understand how we learn and identify strategies that can lead to more effective learning. As with constructivism frameworks (Chapter 5), metacognition offers strategies to support the learner by giving him or her more autonomy and a sense of efficacy during the learning process. However, one cannot just say “I know about metacognitive skills” and see improvement in his or her learning process. One must purposefully use strategies (e.g., identify one’s goals, increase discourse about the learning components, or self-evaluate the factors that could better support one’s learning). The next step

is to practice using such skills. For example, if a new employee effectively self-evaluates the successes and challenges that occur during each work day, he or she would be more apt to also consider what variables may have affected these situations, supporting the increased application of the behaviors that offered him or her the most success (e.g., making sales calls first thing in the morning rather than in the afternoon to support his or her physiological preference for mornings). As the employee continues to practice self-evaluation, it becomes a natural part of his or her cognitive processing. Applying Skeptical Inquiry: Do You Effectively Utilize Metacognition? encourages you to start thinking about how you can use metacognition more intentionally. In section 8.2, we will discover the ways in which we can apply and encourage others to apply metacognitive skills.

Applying Skeptical Inquiry: Do You Effectively Utilize Metacognition?Consider the information you just read about metacognition. Now ask yourself the following questions about the content:

Reflection and Collaboration

In your own words, what do you think about what self-regulated learning and metacognition tell us about learning more effectively?

Self-Reflection

If someone told you that metacognition was not a valid construct for learning more effectively, how might you defend what you know to be true?

Why does metacognition make sense or not make sense to you?

Reasoning

Why should you assume that self-regulatory learning will improve learning effectiveness?

How could you prove that becoming self-aware can improve your ability to learn successfully?

Analysis

What evidence might prove to you that self-regulation does not promote effective learning?

Connections

What real-life events could be applicable to self-awareness deception?

What ideas about self-awareness, self-regulated learning, and metacognition make most sense to you?

Learners who are metacognitive will often ask themselves these types of reflective, reasoning, analysis, and connection questions when they are learning new information.

Questions1. Did you ask yourself these questions as you read the material, before you tried this

exercise?2. Why might asking yourself questions as you read be beneficial for your learning?3. In what ways could you better apply metacognition to your own learning practices?

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8.2 Applied Metacognition Previous sectionNext section

8.2 Applied MetacognitionAlthough metacognition must be honed by the learner, it’s a skill that can be taught to children, coworkers, students, or even clients. This indicates that one’s metacognition can change. Learning how to help yourself and others develop this skill is just as important as understanding what metacognition is from a broader perspective. How might you apply metacognition in your life?

Darling-Hammond and colleagues (2016) have suggested that we “become more efficient and powerful in our learning” through the utilization of metacognition (p. 159). As mentioned in section 8.1, we use metacognition when we

predict outcomes evaluate work

self-assess self-question select strategies think selectively discourse critique revise

The next series of excerpts is from Darling-Hammond, Austin, Cheung, and Martin (2016). The content provides strategies for helping children develop metacognitive skills and discusses how metacognition can be used in classroom environments. Though young learners are the focus in these excerpts, the discussions demonstrate how these skills can be encouraged by facilitators of learning, whether the facilitator is a teacher, parent, counselor, or trainer. The reading also clarifies that “going meta” is an intentional practice. The learner must invoke the process, but a guide can help the learner develop and successfully apply the practice, affecting his or her ability to become a self-regulated learner, which will be discussed further in section 8.3.

Excerpts from “Thinking About Thinking: Metacognition”

By L. Darling-Hammond, K. Austin, M. Cheung, and D. Martin

[. . .] Metacognitive strategies help us become more efficient and powerful in our learning because they help us to find information, evaluate when we need additional resources, and understand when to apply different approaches to problems. When children begin to master these strategies—and learn when, how, and why to use them—they are able to learn more effectively and intentionally (Brown, 1997). These strategies grow increasingly flexible and useful the more they are used and understood. How and when do these strategies develop?

Development of Metacognitive Strategies in Children

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Children learn in tangible ways before they develop metacognitive strategies. Counting blocks or practicing memorization helps children develop learning strategies.

Research suggests that metacognitive capabilities develop over time and depend upon a knowledge base (Brown & DeLoache, 1978). Without knowledge of the domain of mathematics, for instance, young children would have difficulty directing their thinking about how to solve a mathematical word problem. Young children build their knowledge base through concrete experiences with physical materials that they manipulate. When language is used to describe their experiences (“Oh look, you have two stones. Now you have three!”) children develop concepts that, with feedback and instruction, aggregate into more systematic knowledge. In areas

in which children do have a knowledge base, they are quite capable of regulating their thinking in a variety of ways.

Before they learn metacognitive strategies, children do not use tactics like planning their work or monitoring their own problem solving. They do not realize that they can use strategies and shortcuts to help them solve problems. This is not to say that young children do not have metacognitive capabilities. A classic research example involves 3-year-olds who were asked to remember which cup a toy was placed under. Children were able to spontaneously use a number of strategies, like placing a hand on the cup, or moving the cups around to help them remember the location. They were able to use strategies to help them think and remember, evidence that even very young children can be purposeful in their activity (Wellman, Ritter, & Flavell, 1975).

The more children learn about general strategies for learning in specific contexts, the better they become at using them across domains. As John Bransford and colleagues observe, “The broader the range of strategies that children know and can appreciate where they apply, the more precisely they can shape their approaches to the demands of a particular circumstance” (Bransford, Brown, & Cocking, 2000, p. 100). [. . .]

A Culture of Metacognition in the ClassroomA number of conditions support a metacognitive classroom environment. Learning environments that are knowledge-centered and learner-centered, and that take into account the role of assessment in learning, lay the foundation for a reflective classroom (Bransford et al., 2000). Knowledge-centered classrooms focus on meaningful, powerful, nontrivial activities. When students are asked to engage in activities that build on their previous knowledge, challenge them with complex tasks, and require active sense-making (decision-making based on situational awareness), they are more likely to see the utility of being reflective and strategic learners. In such classrooms, students need access to procedural knowledge—How are you going to do this and be successful?—as well as conditional knowledge—When is this going to be useful to you?

Learner-centered classrooms take into account students’ current knowledge, skills, attitudes, and beliefs:

If teaching is conceived as constructing a bridge between the subject matter and the student, learner-centered teachers keep a constant eye on both ends of the bridge. The teachers attempt to get a sense of what students know and can do as well as their interests and passions—what each student knows, cares about, is able to do, and wants to do. (Bransford et al., 2000, p. 136)

Metacognitive activities that ask students to reflect on what they know, care about, and are able to do not only help learners develop an awareness of themselves, but also give learner-centered teachers valuable information for their instruction.

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In the learner-centered classroom, teachers give students prompt feedback, encourage them while they learn, and emphasize reflection on what was learned.

It is important for teachers to give students opportunities to reflect on their learning because it is often difficult for them to realize what they are doing both when they succeed and when they fail. If a person hits a golf ball and he sees the ball has landed 2 feet to the left of the tee, he has good evidence that there was something wrong with his swing. But he still needs some way of analyzing and looking at his swing, or he will not learn how to hit the ball so that it goes 200 yards and straight down the middle. Similarly, if a student writes two essays and gets an A on one of them and a C on the other, he might not understand what he did on the A essay that was different from the C essay. Thus, it is important for the teacher to assist the student in reflecting on his own performance. Without this assistance, he will not know how to improve. Metacognition involves taking what we learn in one situation and transforming it into a level of understanding that is much more likely to transfer to another situation.

Developing a culture of metacognition in the classroom—where students are encouraged to develop this kind of awareness—begins with making the purpose of learning activities and the goals for performance clear to students. Most of us would not leave for a trip without having some sense of our destination. Our destination affects how we prepare, what we pack, and the kind of experience we want to have. However, in schools, it is often more apparent to the teacher than to her students why they are learning something. A teacher can encourage students to “go meta” in their learning by informing her students what the journey is about, why they are taking this journey, what she expects of them, and what tools they will need to help them get there successfully and enjoy the experience.

Assessment based on clear standards and criteria is critical to this process. Formative assessment—opportunities for immediate feedback in the midst of an activity—is one way to help students learn from their learning. Students as well as teachers can provide such feedback. As students engage in activities and projects that require metacognitive thinking, they need frequent feedback about whether or not their thinking is effective and useful to their learning. Self-assessment, peer assessment, and teacher assessment using rubrics that describe the essential elements of a strong performance can give students concrete and specific information about their work, which helps them further direct their own learning and deepen their understanding (Brown et al., 1983).

Self-assessments serve multiple purposes. Not only do they give students practice in reflecting on their own work, they also help teachers learn about how to help their students. As a teacher listens to his students’ thinking about how they are learning and where they are struggling, the teacher has the opportunity to think critically about how to improve his own teaching so as to support the students’ immediate needs. Brigid Barron and her colleagues observe:

An emphasis on self-assessment helps students to develop the ability to monitor their own understanding and to find resources to deepen it when necessary. . . . Learners get opportunities to test their mettle, to see how they are doing and to revise their learning process as necessary. Without these assessment opportunities, the quality of learning can be disappointing—yet, [too often] this is not discovered until the end of the project when it is too late to change and revise the process. (Barron et al., 1998, p. 284)

Metacognitive learning is supported by a culture that encourages and recognizes the importance of revision. When students are given feedback with the purpose of redirecting and revising their work—rather than simply to assign a grade—they have the opportunity to revisit their work with a greater understanding. When a teacher provides clear expectations in terms of how she evaluates student work and provides models and examples that give students a sense of the goals they are striving for, students are empowered to take on more responsibility and ownership in their learning. The key to high-quality work is no longer a mystery; expectations and goals are clear. Students are also more motivated to succeed when they can see concrete pathways to improvement.

Many of the metacognitive skills described here are used when working with others. When students collaborate and interact with one another, they must regulate the ways they explain what they know and also be aware of their classmates’ knowledge. Students must ask such questions as, “What do you know that I don’t know?” or “How can I explain what I know to you so you

will understand?” Classroom activities that encourage such exchanges, like group discussions, group problem solving, or reciprocal teaching, can provide opportunities for making internal thoughts external and building metacognitive awareness. [. . .]

Classroom activities that call on these metacognitive strategies take many forms and vary depending on the topic. Generally, however, activities like journaling (where students keep a journal in which they reflect on what they understand, what they are learning, and what they do not understand), process reflection (where students reflect on their process of learning, including what worked and what did not work for them), or self-assessment (where students assess their own work against standards or criteria for quality) are all ways of activating metacognitive skills. They all require that students consider their own thinking and how they acquired their knowledge. [. . .]

Teachers can model thinking strategies by reflecting on their own processes as learners. They can make transparent for students the processes they themselves use and can ask students to display and discuss their own learning strategies for the class. For example, by demonstrating on a screen how to examine a microbe under a microscope and by talking aloud about his process, a biology teacher can make visible processes that would not be obvious from observation alone. Similarly, by the teacher asking lab teams to brief the class on their processes and findings, students can get access to many different approaches, which can provide different “hooks” into the material.

It is also important for teachers to reflect on their own teaching with their students and with other teachers. Modeling reflective processes such as thinking aloud about strategic decisions (“Should we move on to the next topic, or have we not yet fully explored this one?”), evaluating one’s own work (“How well did I structure those groups?”), and making underlying thoughts visible (“Here’s how I thought about grading these papers.”) contributes to a climate of “going meta” on everyday tasks. [. . .]

Source: Darling-Hammond, L., Austin, K., Cheung, M., & Martin, D. (2016). Thinking about thinking: Metacognition. The Learning Classroom: Theory Into Practice. Used with permission by Annenberg Learner: www.learner.org

Metacognition and AgingIn the previous section, we discussed variables that affect metacognitive development in children, but what happens during the aging process? The effects of aging are all too often obvious to loved ones and friends of older adults, but what does the research suggest about changes in metacognition that might occur as we age? There have been numerous studies about metacognition in relation to a person’s life span (Hertzog & Hultsch, 2000). Older adults are of special interest among researchers because such individuals are susceptible to memory degeneration (Hertzog & Dunlosky, 2011). In addition, there is evidence that older adults are often overconfident in their abilities (Dodson, Bawa, & Krueger, 2007; Hansson, Rönnlund, Juslin, & Nilsson, 2008). Investigations strive to find ways to counteract such age-related phenomena.

The study of judgments of learning is one area of interest among researchers who evaluate connections between the aging process and metacognition (Dunlosky & Metcalfe, 2009; Hertzog, Dunlosky, Powell-Moman, & Kidder, 2002; Robinson, Hertzog, & Dunlosky, 2006). Judgments of learning (JOLs) are individuals’ personal evaluations of how well they learned. For example, if a person is asked upon graduation if he or she is prepared to work in the field of psychology, his or her judgment about this readiness may or may not be accurate. In fact, research has suggested that an individual’s ability to successfully encode information is the moderator of successful JOLs (Hertzog, Dunlosky, Robinson, & Kidder, 2003). Further research has suggested that, when compared with younger adults, older adults have similar abilities to recall information (Haber, 2012; Halamish, McGillivray, & Castel, 2011). These opposing findings reflect how difficult it can be to identify clear details about degenerative, age-related cognitive processing.

The next series of excerpt s is from Palmer, David, and Fleming (2014). The authors consider how metacognitive regulation and knowledge might change as we age.

Excerpts from “Effects of Age on Metacognitive Efficiency”

By E. C. Palmer, A. S. David, and S. M. Fleming

Effects of Aging

[. . .] There is some debate as to whether metacognition changes as we age. On the one hand, we might expect greater life experience leads to more accurate self-knowledge and greater metacognitive efficiency. On the other hand, convergent evidence has revealed a specific neural basis for metacognitive efficiency in the human prefrontal and parietal cortex (Fleming, Huijgen, & Dolan, 2012; Fleming, Weil, Nagy, Dolan, & Rees, 2010; McCurdy et al., 2013; Rounis, Maniscalco, Rothwell, Passingham, & Lau, 2010; Yokoyama et al., 2010) regions of the brain, which are also highly susceptible to aging-related atrophy (Raz et al., 2005; Resnick, Pham, Kraut, Zonderman, & Davatzikos, 2003), and therefore metacognitive efficiency may be expected to decrease as we age. Such a hypothesis is consistent with reports that lack of awareness of cognitive, physical, and perceptual abilities in healthy older adults can be problematic in everyday life. Hertzog and Hultsch (2000) demonstrated that there are notable changes in self-appraisal as we age, and these tend to center on inaccuracies regarding beliefs about cognitive ability and control over cognition. Older adults tend to demonstrate increased overconfidence compared to actual performance when compared to younger adults (Dodson et al., 2007; Hansson et al., 2008). For example, when older adults between the ages of 65 and 91 years old were asked about their driving abilities, 85% of the drivers in this age range rated themselves as “good” or “excellent” drivers despite an increased frequency of accidents (Ross, Dodson, Edwards, Ackerman, & Ball, 2012).

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It is difficult to prove if metacognition increases or decreases with age. Some assume that as we acquire more knowledge throughout a lifetime, self-awareness grows with it.

However, the literature on laboratory measures of metacognition such as confidence judgments and JOLs has shown mixed results. Some studies reveal stable or even improved accuracy of confidence ratings with age for general knowledge (Dodson et al., 2007; Pliske & Mutter, 1996), problem solving (Vukman, 2005), or memory recall tasks (Lachman, Lachman, & Thronesbery, 1979). Similarly, studies investigating JOLs, FOKs (feelings of knowing), and “judgments of forgetting” have found that older adults’ predictions of recall or recognition were as good as those of younger adults (Eakin, Hertzog, & Harris, 2014; Haber, 2012; Halamish et al., 2011). In

contrast, other studies report significant age differences in the accuracy of confidence judgments about learning of emotional information (Tauber & Dunlosky, 2012), study-time allocation (Froger, Sacher, Gaudouen, Isingrini, & Taconnat, 2011), and recall and recognition (Bender & Raz, 2012; Dodson et al., 2007; Huff, Meade, & Hutchison, 2011; Kelley & Sahakyan, 2003; Pansky, Goldsmith, Koriat, & Pearlman-Avnion, 2009; Perrotin, Isingrini, Souchay, Clarys, & Taconnat, 2006; Soderstrom, McCabe, & Rhodes, 2012; Souchay, Isingrini, & Espagnet, 2000; Souchay, Moulin, Clarys, Taconnat, & Isingrini, 2007; Toth, Daniels, & Solinger, 2011; Wong, Cramer, & Gallo, 2012). [. . .]

In many of these studies it has proven difficult to disassociate metacognitive accuracy from age-related changes in performance. Common measures of metacognitive accuracy [. . .] are affected by task performance (Masson & Rotello, 2009), potentially confounding changes in metacognition with age with changes in performance. For example, if two individuals, A and B, have identical metacognitive ability, but A performs better than B on the primary task, A’s metacognition score will appear higher than B’s due to this performance confound. (In other words, it may not be a reduced metacognitive ability, as much as it is another variable associated with aging such as poor eyesight or memory deficits.) Accordingly, Daniels, Toth, and Hertzog (2009) found that older adults had lower accuracy of immediate JOLs for predicting old/new item recognition, but reasoned that this may reflect age-related memory deficits as opposed to deficits in metacognition. [. . .]

Research has also drawn conceptual similarities between characteristics of memory metacognition and executive functions (Fernandez-Duque, Baird, & Posner, 2000; Pannu & Kaszniak, 2005; Shimamura, 1995; Souchay et al., 2000). Executive functions, or the processes controlled by the central executive system (discussed in Chapter 3), include attentional selection, updating, and attention switching. In particular it has been suggested that any age-related decline in metacognition may be due to executive limitations associated with aging (Souchay & Isingrini, 2004), such as working memory impairment. Again, however, results from initial studies examining this issue are mixed. [. . .]

Perceptual Metacognitive Efficiency

Our own research (Hertzog & Dunlosky, 2011) investigates the effects of age on metacognitive efficiency in healthy adults between the ages of 18 and 84. We found that perceptual metacognitive efficiency declined with age, despite task performance being controlled to ensure all participants performed with the same accuracy. In other words, older adults were less efficient at introspecting about whether they are performing well or badly on a perceptual task than younger adults. This result is consistent with previous observations of a weaker match between beliefs and abilities in older adults (Hultsch, MacDonald, Hunter, Levy-Bencheton, & Strauss, 2000; Ross et al., 2012) and age-related differences in the accuracy of confidence judgments (Bender & Raz, 2012; Dodson et al., 2007; Huff et al., 2011; Kelley & Sahakyan, 2003; Pansky et al., 2009; Perrotin et al., 2006; Soderstrom et al., 2012; Souchay et al., 2000, 2007; Toth et al., 2011; Wong et al., 2012). However, many previous studies did not control for the influence of task performance on measures of metacognition. This is particularly critical when studying aging as metacognitive ability may be difficult to distill from other age-related changes in cognitive abilities. [. . .]

We suggest, based on our research, that there is age-related decline in perceptual metacognitive efficiency (one’s belief about their efficiency) while controlling for age-related differences in task performance and executive function. [. . .] Quantifying changes in metacognition with age is critical for an understanding of higher-order cognitive functions in an aging population, especially as deficits in metacognitive monitoring may lead to impaired control of behavior (Koriat & Goldsmith, 1996). Aging-associated diseases such as Alzheimer’s are accompanied by metacognitive deficits that may lead to non-adherence to treatment and impaired decision making (Cosentino, 2014). Our results, when combined with previous research in adolescents (Weil et al., 2013), reveal a non-linear relationship between age and perceptual metacognitive efficiency, increasing during adolescence, plateauing in early adulthood, and declining in older age.

Source: Adapted from Palmer, E. C., David, A. S., & Fleming, S. M. (2014). Effects of age on metacognitive efficiency. Consciousness and Cognition, 28(100), 151–160. Published by Elsevier.

In the first series of excerpts, Darling-Hammond and colleagues (2016) suggested beneficial metacognitive strategies, as applied to children and in the classroom. An understanding of how such strategies effectively support learning in this setting can also facilitate our understanding of how best to support learners in similar contexts.

In the second series of excerpts, Palmer and colleagues (2014) emphasized the difficulty of measuring metacognitive functioning as one ages. They suggested that older adults may perform as well as or better than younger adults in some areas. However, their findings also indicated that older adults may potentially experience declined perceptions about how well or poorly they perform on a task (also referred to as perceptual metacognitive efficiency). For example, if two people, one age 40 and the other age 75, were each asked about how well they did at putting together a puzzle, the older adult might perceive that he did poorly, when in actuality he put the puzzle together more efficiently than the 40-year-old. However, we should continue to apply our own skeptical inquiry and consider whether related factors might influence metacognition. (Although only a speculation based on information that we learned in Chapter 6, is it possible that an individual’s sense of confidence or efficacy while completing a task might be affected by physiological or psychological deterioration, rather than the metacognitive accuracy alone?) See Applying Skeptical Inquiry: Aging, Knowledge Acquisition, and Decision Making to consider some of the other research findings associated with age-related changes that can affect learning.

Researchers have identified several reasons why metacognition is a significant element of knowledge acquisition and learning. For example, a developed metacognition supports executive functioning, including cognition and information processing. Other findings include the following:

Metacognition may compensate for IQ and experiences, improving one’s ability to learn successfully (Swanson, 1990).

Metacognition is a core component of information processing models of self-regulation (Butler & Winne, 1995; Winne, 2001).

Metacognitive monitoring skills support the development of human expertise in general (Glaser & Chi, 1988).

Metacognition develops positive self-efficacy, which then positively affects performance (Coutinho, 2008).

Metacognition is an underlying factor in, and predictor of, academic success as defined by grade point average in college students with learning disabilities (Ruban, 2000; Trainin & Swanson, 2005).

Metacognition is important for developing critical thinking skills (Ku & Ho, 2010). Metacognition is related to overall academic success for college students (Hall, Smith, &

Chia, 2008; Md. Yunus & Ali, 2008; Nietfeld, Cao, & Osborne, 2005; Schleifer & Dull, 2009; Uwazurike, 2010).

Accurate metacognition leads to improved self-regulation that, in turn, positively affects performance (Thiede, Anderson, & Therriault, 2003).

Several of the items in this list spotlight the connections between metacognition and self-regulation, which will be discussed in the next section. Metacognition influences executive functioning (cognitive effectiveness), self-regulation, constructivist-based frameworks, and motivation. In addition, the reliance of self-regulation development on effective metacognition suggests the importance of bridging the different theoretical frameworks (e.g., cognitivism, constructivism, and humanism) in the endeavor to better understand how we learn.

Applying Skeptical Inquiry: Aging, Knowledge Acquisition, and Decision MakingResearch on the effects of aging on knowledge acquisition has diverse findings, and these findings can help us better understand the range of potential considerations and causes of age-related changes on learning. For example:

Salthouse has suggested that older adults process information less quickly than younger adults (1992, 1994).

Cohen (1996), Kausler (1990), and Salthouse, McGuthry, and Hambrick (1999) all have suggested that there are age-related deficits in explicit memory and learning.

Some research has suggested that specific types of processing are affected by age, but others are not (Chen, 2002; Chen, 2004; Chen & Blanchard-Fields, 2000).

Reyna (2004) has suggested that older adults have a decreased need for some cognitive tools based on their increased ability to utilize affective information in decision making.

It is apparent that a multitude of variables can influence the process of learning for older adults, which can make our goal of understanding learning an even more complex task.

The following lecture is presented by Dr. Thad Polk, University of Michigan. Dr. Polk researches cognition using functional MRI, computational modeling, and behavioral experimentation. His work considers how cognition is affected by aging, experience, and

genetics. Watch the video of Dr. Polk’s lecture, “Aging: It’s Not What You Think,” for more information.

https://youtu.be/wrTIS0uKg6o

Questions1. Are you surprised by Dr. Polk’s findings? Why or why not?2. Do these findings suggest the existence of a potential bias about aging adults today?

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8.3 Self-Regulated Learning Previous sectionNext section

8.3 Self-Regulated LearningPioneered by Dr. Barry Zimmerman, self-regulated learning theory (SRL) suggests that strategies that are based on cognitive science can be used to encourage learners to take ownership of their learning experiences. SRL has been studied widely since the 1970s (Paris & Winograd, 2001), but it is often a misunderstood element in the holistic approach to learning because some mistakenly consider it a mental ability or even a skill (Zimmerman et al., 2002). However, Zimmerman et al. (2002) have suggested that self-regulation is a set of behaviors monitored by a self-directive process. When successfully implemented, learners can transform, through guided practice and feedback (Paris & Paris, 2001), their psychological and intellectual abilities into applicable skills (Zimmerman et al., 2002).

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Self-regulated learning is key to processing and retaining information. If group study and discussion are what help you learn, then it is important to set aside time and plan accordingly with other people. If you have recently begun learning a new hobby, you might set a realistic goal and schedule time to practice.

Self-regulated learning is thus the process of setting, monitoring, regulating, and attaining goals through cognition, metacognition, and motivation. According to Schraw et al. (2006), self-regulated learning is governed by three components:

Cognition—Includes the skills essential to encode, memorize, and recall information (see Chapters 2 and 3)

Metacognition—Includes the skills that assist learners in identifying, understanding, and monitoring their cognitive processes (see sections 8.1 and 8.2)

Motivation—Includes the beliefs (e.g., self-efficacy) that can affect the use of cognitive and metacognitive skills (see section 6.4)

However, other researchers have suggested that these three components are not exclusive and posit that self-regulated learning includes a variety of interacting components:

Some researchers have suggested that cognitive, metacognitive, motivational, behavioral, and environmental elements are associated with self-regulation (Butler & Winne, 1995; Zimmerman, 2000).

Some researchers have suggested that self-regulated learning also includes goal setting and identification, self-monitoring, self-instruction, strategy development, and self-reinforcement (Harris & Graham, 1999; Schraw et al., 2006; Zimmerman, 2002).

A self-regulated learner is an individual who has developed the ability to understand and regulate his or her learning behaviors and environments. Self-regulated learners have identified the goals they would like to achieve and the strategies that support the meeting of this goal (Paris & Paris, 2001). This takes the form of diverse strategies and self-monitoring techniques (e.g., managing emotions, taking notes, time management, and the use of tools and resources such as graphic organizers, audio assistive technology, and asking for assistance from peers or instructors). It’s also suggested that self-regulated learners are those who find a way to have success even when they experience negative learning conditions.

Research has provided evidence that self-regulation can be taught and learned, increasing the motivation and success of the learner (Zimmerman & Schunk, 2001). The following excerpts are from Zimmerman (2002). The discussions provide more information about the nature of self-regulation, the processes involved, and how it is utilized. Whether you are a learner, instructor, trainer, or counselor, a better understanding of self-regulation and how to integrate it more effectively can help you improve learning experiences for yourself and others. As you read, be mindful that a learner who is able to self-regulate effectively must first employ metacognitive knowledge and regulation.

Excerpts from “Becoming a Self-Regulated Learner: An Overview”

By B. J. Zimmerman

Developing Lifelong HabitsSelf-regulation is not a mental ability or an academic performance skill; rather it is the self-directive process by which learners transform their mental abilities into academic skills. Learning is viewed as an activity that students do for themselves in a proactive way rather than as a covert event that happens to them in reaction to teaching. Self-regulation refers to self-generated thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that are oriented to attaining goals (Zimmerman,

2000). These learners are proactive in their efforts to learn because they are aware of their strengths and limitations and because they are guided by personally set goals and task-related strategies, such as using an arithmetic addition strategy to check the accuracy of solutions to subtraction problems. These learners monitor their behavior in terms of their goals and self-reflect on their increasing effectiveness. This enhances their self-satisfaction and motivation to continue to improve their methods of learning. Because of their superior motivation and adaptive learning methods, self-regulated students are more likely not only to succeed academically but to view their futures optimistically. [. . .]

Self-regulation of learning involves more than detailed knowledge of a skill; it involves the self-awareness, self-motivation, and behavioral skill to implement that knowledge appropriately. For example, there is evidence (Cleary & Zimmerman, 2000) that experts differ from non-experts in their application of knowledge at crucial times during learning performances, such as correcting specific deficiencies in technique.

Contemporary research tells us that self-regulation of learning is not a single personal trait that individual students either possess or lack. Instead, it involves the selective use of specific processes that must be personally adapted to each learning task. The component skills include:

1. Setting specific proximal goals for oneself2. Adopting powerful strategies for attaining the goals3. Monitoring one’s performance selectively for signs of progress4. Restructuring one’s physical and social context to make it compatible with one’s goals5. Managing one’s time use efficiently6. Self-evaluating one’s methods7. Attributing causation to results8. Adapting future methods

A student’s level of learning has been found to vary based on the presence or absence of these key self-regulatory processes (Schunk & Zimmerman, 1994, 1998).

Contemporary research reveals that the self-motivated quality of self-regulated learners depends on several underlying beliefs, including perceived efficacy and intrinsic interest. [. . .] For example, experts spend approximately four hours each day in study and practice and find these activities highly motivating. They vary their methods of study and practice in order to discover new strategies for self-improvement. With such diverse skills as chess, sports, and music, the quantity of an individual’s studying and practicing is a strong predictor of his or her level of expertise. There is also evidence that the quality of practicing and studying episodes is highly predictive of a learner’s level of skill (Zimmerman & Kitsantas, 1997, 1999).

However, few beginners in a new discipline immediately derive powerful self-motivational benefits, and they may easily lose interest if they are not socially encouraged and guided, as most music teachers will readily attest (McPherson & Zimmerman, in press). Fortunately, the motivation of novices can be greatly enhanced when and if they use high-quality self-regulatory processes, such as close self-monitoring. Students who have the capabilities to detect subtle progress in learning will increase their levels of self-satisfaction and their beliefs in their

personal efficacy to perform at a high level of skill (Schunk, 1983). Clearly, their motivation does not stem from the task itself, but rather from their use of self-regulatory processes, such as self-monitoring, and the effects of these processes on their self-beliefs.

Structure and Function of Self-Regulatory ProcessesThis brings us to the essential question of how does a learner’s use of specific learning processes, level of self-awareness, and motivational beliefs combine to produce self-regulated learners? Social learning psychologists view the structure of self-regulatory processes in terms of three cyclical phases. The forethought phase refers to processes and beliefs that occur before efforts to learn, the performance phase refers to processes that occur during behavioral implementation, and the self-reflection phase refers to processes that occur after each learning effort. The processes that have been studied in each phase to date are shown in Figure 8.1, and the function of each process will be described next (Zimmerman, 2000).

Figure 8.1: Phases and sub-processes of self-regulation

The self-regulatory process includes three phases: forethought, performance, and self-reflection. Each phase also includes two sub-processes.

Adapted from “Becoming a Self-Regulated Learner: An Overview,” by B. J. Zimmerman, 2002, Theory Into Practice, 41(2), 67. doi:10.1207/s15430421tip4102_2. Francis & Taylor, Ltd. Copyright © 2002 Routledge.

Forethought Phase

There are two major classes of forethought phase processes: task analysis and self-motivation. Task analysis involves goal setting and strategic planning. There is considerable evidence of increased academic success by learners who set specific proximal goals for themselves, such as memorizing a word list for a spelling test, and by learners who plan to use spelling strategies, such as segmenting words into syllables.

Self-motivation stems from learners’ beliefs about learning, such as self-efficacy beliefs about having the personal capability to learn and outcome expectations about personal consequences of learning (Bandura, 1997). For example, students who feel self-efficacious about learning to divide fractions and expect to use this knowledge to pass a college entrance exam are more motivated to learn in a self-regulated fashion. Intrinsic interest refers to the students’ valuing of the task skill for its own merits, and learning goal orientation refers to valuing the process of learning for its own merits. Students who find the subject matter of history, for example, interesting and enjoy increasing their mastery of it are more motivated to learn in a self-regulated fashion.

Performance Phase

Performance phase processes fall into two major classes: self-control and self-observation. Self-control refers to the deployment of specific methods or strategies that were selected during the forethought phase. Among the key types of self-control methods that have been studied to date are the use of imagery, self-instruction, attention focusing, and task strategies. For example, in learning the Spanish word pan for “bread,” an English-speaking girl could form an image of a bread pan or self-instruct using the phrase “bread pan.” She could also locate her place of study away from distracting noises so she could control her attention better. For a task strategy, she could group the Spanish word pan with associated words for foods.

Self-observation refers to self-recording personal events or self-experimentation to find out the cause of these events. For example, students are often asked to self-record their time use to make them aware of how much time they spend studying. A boy may notice that when he studied alone, he finished his homework more quickly than when studying with a friend. To test this hypothesis, the boy could conduct a self-experiment in which he studied parallel lessons alone and in the presence of his friend to see whether his friend was an asset or a liability. Self-monitoring, a covert form of self-observation, refers to one’s cognitive tracking of personal functioning, such as the frequency of failing to capitalize words when writing an essay.

Self-Reflection Phase

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Part of self-judgment is causal attribution, which can be either positive or negative. For example, after an interview, a job candidate finds out she didn’t receive the position. She could attribute this either to her amateur ability as a worker or to her interview skills or work experience. The latter two options are controllable and are positive attributions because the candidate can actively practice and change them.

There are two major classes of self-reflection phase processes: self-judgment and self-reaction. Self-judgment is the act of evaluating one’s behaviors, and two forms of self-judgment are considered here. One form of self-judgment, self-evaluation, refers to comparisons of self-observed performances against some standard, such as one’s prior performance, another person’s performance, or an absolute standard of performance. Another form of self-judgment involves causal attribution, which refers to beliefs about the cause of one’s errors or successes, such as a score on a mathematics test. Attributing a poor score to limitations in fixed ability can be very damaging motivationally because it implies that efforts to improve on a future test will not be effective. In contrast, attributing a poor math score to controllable processes, such as the use of

the wrong solution strategy, will sustain motivation because it implies that a different strategy may lead to success.

Self-reaction is the act of providing one’s self with both positive and negative reinforcement. One form of self-reaction involves feelings of self-satisfaction and positive affect regarding one’s performance. Increases in self-satisfaction enhance motivation, whereas decreases in self-satisfaction undermine further efforts to learn (Schunk, 2001). Self-reactions also take the form of adaptive/defensive responses. Defensive reactions refer to efforts to protect one’s self-image by withdrawing or avoiding opportunities to learn and perform, such as dropping a course or being absent for a test. In contrast, adaptive reactions refer to adjustments designed to increase the effectiveness of one’s method of learning, such as discarding or modifying an ineffective learning strategy.

This view of self-regulation is cyclical in that self-reflections from prior efforts to learn affect subsequent forethought processes (e.g., self-dissatisfaction will lead to lower levels of self-efficacy and diminished effort during subsequent learning) (Zimmerman & Bandura, 1994). In support of this cyclical view of self-regulation, high correlations were found among learners’ use of forethought, performance, and self-reflection phase processes (Zimmerman & Kitsantas, 1999). For example, students who set specific proximal goals are more likely to self-observe their performance in these areas, are more likely to achieve in the target area, and will display higher levels of self-efficacy than students who do not set goals (Bandura & Schunk, 1981). Other studies have revealed that experts display significantly higher levels of self-regulatory processes during practice efforts than novices (Cleary & Zimmerman, 2000).

Novice Versus ExpertThe self-regulation profile of novices is very distinctive from that of experts. Novices fail to engage in high-quality forethought and instead attempt to self-regulate their learning reactively. That is, they fail to set specific goals or to self-monitor systematically, and as a result, they tend to rely on comparisons with the performance of others to judge their learning effectiveness. Because typically other learners are also progressing, their performance represents a constantly increasing criterion of success that is very difficult to surpass. Furthermore, learners who make comparative self-evaluations are prompted to attribute causation to ability deficiencies (which are also normative in nature), and this will produce lower personal satisfaction and prompt defensive reactions.

In contrast, the self-regulation profile of experts reveals they display high levels of self-motivation and set hierarchical goals for themselves with process goals leading to outcome goals in succession, such as dividing a formal essay into an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. Experts plan learning efforts using powerful strategies and self-observe their effects, such as a visual organizer for filling in key information (Zimmerman & Risemberg, 1997). They self-evaluate their performance against their personal goals rather than other learners’ performance, and they make strategy (or method) attributions instead of ability attributions. This leads to greater personal satisfaction with their learning progress and further efforts to improve their performance. Together these self-reactions enhance various self-motivational beliefs of experts, such as self-efficacy, outcome expectations, learning goal orientation, and intrinsic interest.

Knowing the differences in the structure and function of self-regulatory processes between experts and novices has enabled researchers to formulate intervention programs in schools for children who display lower levels of self-regulatory development (Schunk & Zimmerman, 1998). [. . .]

Contrary to a commonly held belief, self-regulated learning is not asocial in nature and origin. Each self-regulatory process or belief, such as goal setting, strategy use, and self-evaluation, can be learned from instruction and modeling by parents, teachers, coaches, and peers. In fact, self-regulated students seek out help from others to improve their learning. What defines them as “self-regulated” is not their reliance on socially isolated methods of learning, but rather their personal initiative, perseverance, and adoptive skill. Self-regulated students focus on how they activate, alter, and sustain specific learning practices in social as well as solitary contexts. In an era when these essential qualities for lifelong learning are distressingly absent in many students, teaching self-regulated learning processes is especially relevant.

Source: Zimmerman, B. J. (2002). Becoming a Self-Regulated Learner: An Overview. Theory Into Practice. Francis & Taylor, Ltd. Copyright © 2002 Routledge.

Self-regulation suggests that learners can be as successful as they choose to be when they have the knowledge to apply strategies that support information processing in the most effective and efficient way. As suggested, applying self-regulation intentionally supports the effort of development from novice to expert. This intentionality also applies when practicing each phase of the self-regulatory process (forethought, performance, and self-reflection). This process provides the opportunity for a learner to be more engaged and autonomous in his or her performances, behavior modifications, and outcomes. See Reinforcing Your Understanding: Tips for Regulating Your Learning to learn specific self-regulation strategies that you can apply in your online education courses.

Consider how this information will apply to your present or future endeavors: Will you train employees? Counsel children or adults? Support geriatric programs? Raise children? Volunteer for a nonprofit? The content about self-regulation appropriately completes this text because it suggests that, in the end, the learner will be the one to decide what he or she believes and what is applicable, whether you are the learner or you are responsible for guiding other learners. It is up to the learner to discover more information, evaluate the findings, and consider the implications. Whatever your path, a developed understanding about how we learn and how we learn more effectively can help you and those you instruct throughout the learning process.

Reinforcing Your Understanding: Tips for Regulating Your LearningMyron Dembo is the author of Motivation and Learning Strategies for College Success: A Focus on Self-Regulated Learning and a now-retired professor of educational psychology at the University of Southern California’s Rossier School of Education. Time management and goal setting are just two of the challenges that students might face when learning new material. In the

video provided, Dembo discusses online learning and suggests behaviors that support self-regulation and increased performance for distance learners.

https://youtu.be/weSFo3Jk0qU

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Summary & Resources Previous sectionNext section

Summary & ResourcesChapter SummaryMetacognition and self-regulation are two areas of learning psychology that suggest that behaviors can effectively increase our personal success in knowledge acquisition. These variables are not fixed; they can be developed and strengthened throughout life (Darling-Hammond et al., 2016). Self-awareness is essential to both metacognition and self-regulation. A crucial part of this chapter is identifying how we can connect the metacognition and self-regulation strategies with the information that was introduced in other areas of the text. For example, how might self-regulation and metacognition support the associations of meaning you acquire, your memory development, or your construction of knowledge?

The benefits of developing one’s metacognition and becoming a self-regulated learner tap into much of the content we have considered in this text. The learning process is physiological, psychological, biological, and complex. The psychology of learning encompasses different ideologies for testing, different perspectives about applicability, and diverse scholarly opinions about the validity of one theory, model, or framework over another.

It is essential to understand the more traditional theoretical frameworks, such as behaviorism, and the key role cognition has in better understanding how we learn. From these key theories, numerous other models and variables have been identified, each building off one another and

encouraging us to ask more questions about what affects successful learning. For example, constructivism suggests that reality is perceived and that knowledge is not knowledge unless it has an attached meaning that aligns with one’s context or culture. Models based on humanistic ideologies spotlight the roles of motivation and attention to the whole person, including individual needs, learning preferences, and goals. Each of these frameworks adds a dimension to the field of learning and offers us knowledge that we can use to increase our own success and to support others.

Understanding how we learn, from a holistic perspective, has many advantages that affect not only how we as individuals learn, but also how we more successfully train, counsel, parent, and instruct others. In discussions about behavioral analysis (behaviorism), we learned that our awareness of environmental stimuli, reinforcers, and associations can affect our learning behaviors. In discussions about cognitivism, we learned that memory development and successful information processing are affected by our attention, perceptions, emotions, processing ability, schema development, chunking, and cognitive mapping. Details about constructivism encouraged us to consider how culture, diversity, and experience can mold our interpretations and constructions of our knowledge. The ideas suggested by humanism remind us of the importance of personal motivation, goal setting, and preferential learning, which might each affect the learning process. These findings can be effectively monitored, developed, and improved through the application of self-regulation and metacognitive strategies.

Key Ideas Metacognition is an individual’s awareness and management of his or her thoughts and

thinking processes. Metacognitive regulations support highly developed metacognitive skills. Metacognition suggests that an individual has control of, or autonomy over, his or her

own learning. Effective metacognitive regulation includes intentional planning, self-monitoring, and

self-development. Perceptual metacognitive efficiency is a learner’s perceptions about the effectiveness of

his or her own learning capabilities. Self-regulation develops psychological and intellectual abilities into usable skills that can

be used to attain more effective learning. Self-regulation can be developed and is not a personal trait that individual learners either

possess or lack. A low level of self-awareness increases the likelihood for self-deception. Self-deception can result in false memory development and reduced cognitive awareness,

which can affect learning. Self-regulated learning is supported by three components: cognition, metacognition, and

motivation. Self-regulated learning includes goal setting and identification, self-monitoring, self-

instruction, strategy development, and self-reinforcement. Learners can use self-reinforcers and self-reactions to develop their behaviors that

support learning.

Additional ResourcesMetacognition and self-regulation are models for learning that promote efficiency based on cognition and information processing. Through self-management and awareness of one’s own weaknesses and strengths, learners can have the potential to exercise more control over and improve their learning experiences. Visit the following resources to further your understanding of the topics that were introduced in this chapter. Some resources may also be accessible via your university library.

Metacognition

“Metacognition and Student Learning” from The Chronicle of Higher Education: http://www.chronicle.com/article/MetacognitionStudent/130327

Manasia, L. and Pârvan, A. (2014). Challenging adult learning and work experience through metacognitive reflection. A case study approach. Social and Behavioral Sciences, 142(14). 447–453. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science /article/pii/S1877042814046229

Khezrlou, T. S. (2012). The relationship between cognitive and metacognitive strategies, age, and level of education. The Reading Matrix, 12(1). Retrieved from http://www.readingmatrix.com/articles/april_2012/khezrlou.pdf

Baker, L. (1989). Metacognition, comprehension monitoring, and the adult reader. Educational Psychology Review, 1(1), 3. doi:10.1007/BF01326548

Self-Regulated Learning

Florez, I. R. (2011). Developing young children’s self-regulation through everyday experiences. Young Children, 72(3), 46–51. Retrieved from https://www.naeyc.org /files/yc/file/201107/Self-Regulation_Florez_OnlineJuly2011.pdf

Weimer, M. (2010, July). What it means to be a self-regulated learner. Faculty Focus. Retrieved from http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teaching-and-learning /what-it-means-to-be-a-self-regulated-learner/

Key Termsexecutive controlexecutive functionsforethought phasejudgments of learning (JOLs)knowledge-centered classroomslearner-centered classroomsmetacognitionmetacognitive judgmentsmetacognitive knowledgemetacognitive skillsperformance phase

self-controlself-judgmentself-motivationself-observationself-reactionself-reflection phaseself-regulated learnerself-regulated learningself-regulated learning theory (SRL)sense-makingtask analysis

Knowledge Check Notebook