I began at what I could find was the beginning. John Flavell was the first researcher to conceptualize metacognition. He described it as having four components: the first is metacognitive knowledge, the knowledge or the beliefs that we relate to cognitive activities; the second part is the metacognitive experiences including how it is in relation to thoughts or metacognitive goals; the third is goals or tasks we want to achieve; the last is the strategies that are used to control the thoughts to achieve our goals of a certain cognitive task (Flavell 1979). All of these are related to the others but it is important to note that the teaching or studying of metacognition needs to begin with the metacognitive knowledge, what we know already about cognitive activity and work our way from there. Having done that and experienced some form of metacognition throughout my studies, I am more concerned about the fourth component, strategies I can use to reflect on or control thoughts. For my personal practice, because as a new teacher, I did not feel that I had any specific strategies to teach to my students. With that being said, I also feel that it is just as essential to be transparent to my students about what I teach so they will understand its importance and relevance to their education.
In the classroom, I believe that communication is imperative when working with others (Chappuis 2012) so I will tell my students that I will teach them strategies to help them evaluate their learning. I have already had experience with my practicum class in terms of communication about what and why I do or teach certain concepts (experience not exactly wanted but necessary for my progression as an educator ) so I know I will have more support if my students know my reasoning behind my teaching. In saying this, the lessons in each unit that I teach during my 10-week practicum will have a similar format so they know what to expect.
All of the articles that I read have been reviewed and are linked in the archives on the right hand side. Unfortunately, I could not figure out how to link them into this page.
References
Flavell, John. (1979). “Metacognition and cognitive monitoring: A new area of developmental cognitive inquiry”. American Psychologist, 34 (10). 906-911.
Chappuis, Jan. “How Am I Doing?” Education Leadership. September 2012. 36-40.