Lesson 1.

Metacognition,
Motivation, Motivation Theories

MTHD 201 (Facilitating Learner-Centered Teaching)

 Overview
• What is Metacognition & why is it important?
• What is Motivation? And why is it important
• What are the Theories of Motivation?
 What is metacognition?
• “thinking about thinking”
• Knowledge and understanding of what we
know and how we think, including the ability
to regulate our thinking as we work on a task
 Why is metacognition important?
• ...if it happens of its own accord anyway?

• Shapes active rather than passive learners

• Gives pupils sense of control over learning
• Learning how to learn.
• Helps to promote “deep learning”
 Why is metacognition important?

• Learning how to learn.

• Helps to promote “deep learning”
• A key component of Assessment for Learning
– emphasises the child’s active role in his/her own learning, in that the
teacher and child agree what the outcomes of the learning should be
and the criteria for judging to what extent the outcomes have been
achieved…This level of involvement in shaping their own learning can
heighten children’s awareness of themselves as learners and
encourage them to take more personal responsibility for, and pride in,
their learning
NCCA, 2007
The Learning Cycle
 Theories and principles
associated with motivation
 What is motivation?
•What choices do people make about their
behavior?
•How long does it take to get started on a task?
•What is the intensity or level of involvement?
•What causes a person to persist or to give up?
•What is the individual thinking and feeling during
the activity?
General ideas: intrinsic vs. extrinsic
motivation
Intrinsic: Natural tendency to seek out and
conquer challenges, stems from interest or
curiosity, the activity itself is rewarding

Extrinsic: Engagement occurs in order to earn a

reward or avoid punishment, not really
interested in the activity for its own sake
 Theoretical approaches to
motivation…
Self-determination theory (Edward Deci and
Richard Ryan):
Humans have basic needs including the need to:
(1) feel in control of their lives (autonomy);
(2) be effective in dealing with the environment
(competence) and;
(3) have relationships with others (relatedness)
With your neighbor, distill three pedagogical principles that make sense in light of self-determination theory.
 Theoretical approaches to
motivation…
Self-worth theory (Martin V. Covington):
• We must protect our sense of competence, or,
our self-worth
• This drives us to try to be successful
• May cause us to avoid certain activities where
we might not be successful - this is called self-
handicapping
Describe a time when you or someone you knew was unwilling to attempt a new activity. How would a self-worth theorist describe this behavior?
 Theoretical approaches to
motivation…
Expectancy value theory Jacquelynne Eccles and her
colleagues:
Motivation is a function of two values -
Expectancy, or the belief that one will succeed at a task or
activity
and…
Value, or the belief that there will be some reward or
indirect benefit from participating in the task or
activity
Think carefully about your content area… what kinds of activities or ideas would your pursue that have a high value to students? How then, would you increase expectancy?
 Theoretical approaches to
motivation…
Social cognitive theory (Albert Bandura):
Self-efficacy is the key here… believing oneself
capable of successfully performing certain tasks
or activities
Persistence comes from increased self-efficacy
Increased self-efficacy can come from encouraging
words and past successes
Turn to your neighbor and describe two activities - one in which you have a high level of self-efficacy and another in which you have a low level of self-efficacy. Now
imagine what a teacher could do to engage you in tasks associated with the low self-efficacy activity. How is this just like school for many kids?
 Theoretical approaches to
motivation…
Attribution theory (Bernard Weiner):
Explore learners’ beliefs about why they do well or
poorly on academic tasks. These beliefs are
known as attributions.
Attributions can be associated with external factors
(luck, whim, destiny…) or internal factors (hard
work, character…)
From this we get internal vs. external locus of
control
What advice would you give to a student of yours who scored well on a test but really seemed to believe it must be about luck more than about effort?
 Theoretical approaches to
motivation…
Goal theory (Edwin A. Locke):
People pursue goals in several areas that may
include academics, social relationships, career,
financial gain, physical and psychological well-
being.
In school settings, goal theorists distinguish
between mastery goals (to gain new knowledge
and skills) and performance goals (to look
competent in the eyes of others)
Tell a story about a student you knew or know who is all about performance goals. How can you help students adopt mastery goals?