Facilitating Learner-Centered Teaching

METACOGNITION
Prepared by
MR. JONATHAN M. AYSON
 Agenda
In this lesson, challenge yourself to attain the following
learning outcomes:
 explain metacognition in your own words.
 apply metacognitive strategies in your own quest for learning as
a novice or an expert learner.
 Study Habits Questionnaire
The six parts of the questionnaire pertain to the following
aspects of study habits:

 Part 1 Motivation
 Part 2 Organizing and planning your work
 Part 3 Working with others; Utilizing resources and feedback
 Part 4 Managing school work stress
 Part 5 Note-taking and reading
 Part 6 Preparing an assignment/project
 Scoring for Part 1 – Motivation
Feedback:
 Scores from 55 to 80 mean that you do not appear to have many problems
getting down to work and keep to it.
 Scores from 31 to 50 mean that you sometimes get down to work but you
can be distracted, you might not always be certain why you have to work.
You probably could benefit from learning some techniques that help you
get down to work more consistently and keep at it.
 Scores of 30 and below signify that you really do have problems in getting
down to work. Unless you develop skills in this area you are likely to have
many unsatisfactory experiences as a student throughout your life. You
need to take action.
 Scoring for Part 2 – Organizing and Planning
Your Work
Feedback:
 Scores from 70 to 100 mean you are well-organized and plan
ahead for your work.
 Scores from 40 to 65 mean you are not as well-organized as you
can be. Your time management may benefit from a closer
analysis.
 Scores of 35 and below mean you have little organization,
probably deal with things as they happen, constantly doing
things at the last minute, often not getting work completed. You
need to take action.
 Scoring for Part 3 – Working with Others,
Utilizing Resources, and Feedback
Feedback:
 Scores from 55 to 85 mean you make full use of resources
available, listen well and take an active part in seminars.
 Scores from 35 to 50 mean you probably collect resources, but
you need to ask yourself how to use them more effectively.
 Scores of 30 and below mean there are important resources
around you that you are ignoring. You may not be hearing much
of what is being said. You need to know what resources are
available, and you need to find out where they are and what they
have to offer. You need to take action.
 Scoring for Part 4 – Managing School/Work
Stress
Feedback:
 Scores from 35 to 40 mean that although you sometimes get stressed and
worried you have the skills of knowing how to minimize problems and
look after yourself.
 Scores from 40 to 65 mean that you handle your anxieties and concerns
moderately well but could develop skills to manage them more effectively.
 Scores of 68 and 80 mean that you are likely to get overwhelmed with
your problems which will make you much less effective as a student. You
need to acquire the skills of managing stress more effectively. You need to
take action.
 Scoring for Part 5 – Note-taking and Reading
Feedback:
 Scores from 75 to 110 mean you prepare well and read efficiently,
learning as you go. You waste little time reading irrelevant
materials.
 Scores from 45 to 70 mean your reading and note taking skills
are adequate, but could be improved.
 Scores of 40 and below mean your notes are likely to be of little
use to you, if they exist at all. You spend a lot of time reading or
sitting in but come home with very little. You need to become
more selective in what you read or write down. You need to take
action.
 Scoring for Part 6 – Preparing an
Assignment/Project
Feedback:
 Scores from 65 to 80 mean that although you sometimes get stressed and
worried you have the skills of knowing how to minimize problems and
look after yourself.
 Scores from 40 to 65 mean that you handle your anxieties and concerns
moderately well but could develop skills to manage them more effectively.
 Scores of 35 and under mean that you are likely to get overwhelmed with
your problems which will make you much less effective as a student. You
need to acquire the skills of managing stress more effectively. You need to
take action.
 Metacognition
What you just did while answering the questionnaire and
analyzing your scores is an exercise in metacognition. You stopped
for a moment and thought about how you study and learn. You
were reminded of your strengths and weaknesses, then you wrote
what it is that you can do to improve your study habits. Hopefully,
this will help you start to learn more effectively.
 The most important goal of education is to teach students
how to learn on their own. The quotation on the side margin
stresses this. It is vital that students acquire the skills of how to
learn; and that these skills enable them to learn not just while
they are in school but for a lifetime. This entails a deeper
awareness of how one processes information, the ability to
evaluate his own thinking and to think of ways to make his own
learning process more effective. All these involve metacognition.
 What is metacognition? This appears to be such a high-
sounding word that some people are confused about even before
they actually spend time to find out what it really means. It is not
at all that complicated. In fact, we do metacognitive activities so
often in our daily lives. When you sense that you are experiencing
some difficulty with a topic you are studying, and you try out
different strategies to learn better, you are practicing
metacognition. The word maybe long, seems to be so intangible
but it is worth focusing on because it can help you to be a more
successful learner. When you become a teacher, it can also help
your students to learn more efficiently and effectively.
 The term "metacognition" was coined by John Flavell.
According to Flavell (1979, 1987), metacognition consists of both
metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive experiences or
regulation. Metacognition, simply put, is "thinking about
thinking" or "learning how to learn". It refers to higher order
thinking which involves active awareness and control over the
cognitive processes engaged in learning. Metacognitive knowledge
refers to acquired knowledge about cognitive processes,
knowledge that can be used to control cognitive processes. Flavell
further divides metacognitive knowledge into three categories:
knowledge of person variables, task variables and strategy
variables.
Person Variables. This includes how one views himself as a
learner and thinker. Knowledge of person variables refers to
knowledge about how human beings learn and process
information, as well as individual knowledge of one's own
learning processes. For example, you may be aware that you study
more effectively if you study very early in the morning than late in
the evening, and that you work better in a quiet library rather than
at home where there are a lot of things that make it hard for you to
focus and concentrate.
Task Variables. Knowledge of task variables includes knowledge
about the nature of the task as well as the type of processing
demands that it will place upon the individual. It is about
knowing what exactly needs to be accomplished, gauging its
difficulty and knowing the kind of effort it will demand from you.
For example, you may be aware that it takes more time for you to
read and comprehend a book in educational philosophy than it is
for you to read and comprehend a novel.
Strategy Variables. Knowledge of strategy variables involves
awareness of the strategy you are using to learn a topic and
evaluating whether this strategy is effective. If you think your
strategy is not working, then you may think of various strategies
and try out one to see if it will help you learn better. Terms like
meta-attention and meta-memory are related to strategy
variables. Meta-attention is the awareness of specific strategies so
that you can keep your attention focused on the topic or task at
hand. Meta-memory is your awareness of memory strategies that
work best for you.
 These three variables all interact as you learn and apply
metacognition. Omrod includes the following in the practice of
metacogniton:
 Knowing the limits of one's own learning and memory capacities
 Knowing what learning tasks one can realistically accomplish within a
certain amount of time
 Knowing which learning strategies are effective and which are not
 Planning an approach to. a learning task that is likely to be successful
 Using effective learning strategies to process and learn new material
 Monitoring one's own knowledge and comprehension. In other words, knowing
when information has been successfully learned and when it's not
 Using effective strategies for retrieval of previously stored information
 Knowledge is said to be metacognitive if it is keenly used in a purposeful
manner to ensure that a goal is met. For example, a student may use
knowledge in planning how to do homework: "I know that I (person
variable) have more difficulty with my science assignments than English
and find Araling Panlipunan easier (task variable), so I will do my
homework in science first, then Language Arts, then Araling Panlipunan.
(strategy variable)." If one is only aware about one's cognitive strengths or
weaknesses and the nature of the task but does not use this to guide or
oversee his/her own learning, then no metacognition has been applied.
 Huitt believes that metacognition includes the ability to ask
and answer the following types of questions:
 What do I know about this subject, topic, issue?
 Do I know what I need to know?
 Do I know where I can go to get some information, knowledge?
 How much time will I need to learn this?
 What are some strategies and tactics that I can use to learn this?
 Did I understand what I just heard, read or saw?
 How will I know if I am learning at an appropriate rate?
 How can I spot an error if I make one?
 How should I revise my plan if it is not working to my
expectations/satisfaction?