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Importance of self-regulated learning
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One of the most powerful tools for learners to develop is the ability to monitor and direct their learning.
Self-regulated learners are aware of their strengths and weaknesses, can motivate themselves to engage in their learning, and most importantly, know how to improve.
At the heart of this is metacognition, a term that is well known in schools. The process of 鈥渢hinking about thinking鈥 is one of the greatest tools we can empower pupils to develop to improve the awareness of their learning.
The Sutton Trust-EEF Teaching and Learning Toolkit, which summarizes international evidence, recommends 鈥渕etacognition and self-regulation鈥 as a highimpact, low-cost approach to improving the attainment of learners.
So, what does this mean and what does it look like when children are faced with a learning task?
Before starting a task, it is important for pupils to be aware of the knowledge that they already have. When we talk about knowledge, we do not simply mean knowledge of the subject, but also knowledge of the strategies they would use and of their abilities. When undertaking a learning task, we start with this knowledge, then apply and adapt it. This is metacognitive regulation. The three main steps in this process are planning on how to undertake a task, working on it while monitoring the strategy to check progress, then evaluating its success.
Most children will not spontaneously develop the tools and strategies they need for effective learning.
Developing key metacognitive strategies requires explicit instruction. This does not mean telling pupils what to do, but describes all the activities that a teacher facilitates to bring about learning in their pupils.
This process is the opposite of a lecturing approach. It combines explicit teacher input with specific questioning and feedback. At Wellington College International Shanghai, our 鈥淟earning to Learn鈥 course provides explicit teaching of these skills for pupils in Years 6, 7 and 8.
At home, you can help to facilitate this by using questions for each step of the process. These sorts of questions are used every day by teachers to help prompt thinking and guide children through the metacognitive steps. They can easily be applied at home when studying or working through a task.
Planning:
鈥淲hat resources do I need to carry out this task?鈥
鈥淗ave I done something similar before and was it successful?鈥
鈥淲here do I start?鈥
Monitoring:
鈥淎m I doing well?鈥
鈥淒o I need any different techniques or strategies to improve?鈥
鈥淎m I finding this challenging?鈥
鈥淚s there anything I need to stop and change to improve?鈥
Evaluation:
鈥淗ow did I do?鈥
鈥淒id the strategy I chose work?鈥
鈥淗ow would I do it differently next time?鈥
鈥淲hat might I do differently next time?鈥
During the summer vacation, if children are working on assignments, they can apply this process to help them regulate their learning. The act of planning for learning, monitoring progress and evaluating is a powerful learning habit to develop.
More info on Education Endowment Foundation at https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/evidence-summaries/teaching-learning-toolkit
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