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Great resource for research based lesson templates to increase student engagement in learning. Lessons can be used across any curriculum area.

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Great resource for research based lesson templates to increase student engagement in learning. Lessons can be used across any curriculum area.

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The EduProtocol Field Guide: 16 Student-Centered Lesson Frames for Infinite Learning Possibilities

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Sixteen classroom-tested customizable lesson-frames for any subject or grade to break up clichéd lesson plans, build culture, and deliver content to K-12 students in a supportive, creative environment.

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Donna Wilson & Marcus Conyers Table of Contents About the Authors

About This Book

If the difference between a student's success and failure were something specific you could teach, wouldn't you?

Metacognition is exactly that-a tool that helps students unlock their brain's amazing power and take control of their learning. Educational researchers and professional developers Donna Wilson and Marcus Conyers have been exploring and using the explicit teaching of metacognition for years, and in this book they share a practical way to teach preK-12 students how to drive their brains by promoting the following practices:

Adopt an optimistic outlook toward learning,

Set goals,

Focus their attention,

Monitor their progress, and

Engage in practices that enhance cognitive flexibility.

Wilson and Conyers explain metacognition and how it equips students to meet today's rigorous education standards. They present a unique blend of useful metaphors, learning strategies, and instructional tips you can use to teach your students to be the boss of their brains. Sample lessons show these ideas in a variety of classroom settings, and sections on professional practice help you incorporate these tools (and share them with colleagues and parents) so that you are teaching for and with metacognition.

Research suggests that metacognition is key to higher student achievement, but studies of classroom practice indicate that few students are taught to use metacognition and the supporting cognitive strategies that make learning easier. You can teach metacognition to your students, so why wouldn't you? This book shows you how.
See the book's table of contents and read excerpts
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Aboutthe Authors

DONNA WILSON, leader of the academic team at BrainSMART and the Center for Innovative Education and Prevention, is an educational and school psychologist and former teacher. Wilson is codeveloper of graduate studies in mind, brain, and education science at the master's through doctoral levels and has facilitated professional development with tens of thousands of educators.
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MARCUS CONYERS is a doctoral researcher at the University of Westminster and director of research and development for the Center for Innovative Education and Prevention. As the coauthor of 20 books on applications of mind, brain, and education science, he has led statewide initiatives and worked in 30 countries, reaching more than 100,000 administrators and teachers.
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the brain and learning

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Teaching Students to Drive Their Brains: Metacognitive Strategies, Activities, and Lesson Ideas

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Donna Wilson & Marcus Conyers Table of Contents About the Authors If the difference between a student's success and failure were something specific you could teach, wouldn't you? Metacognition is exactly that-a tool that helps students unlock their brain's amazing power and take control of their learning.

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Changing the focus from Grades to learning...

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Changing the focus from Grades to learning...

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Thinking about thinking. It's not a new concept and can be linked to higher order thinking in which a person takes "active control over the cognitive processes engaged in [their] learning" (Livingston, 1997, para. 1). The process of thinking about one's own thinking is often called metacognition, although by definition, metacognition is "cognition about cognition."

Background

The historical roots of metacognition first took hold in the 1970s-the concept was introduced by developmental psychologist John Flavell, whose "work focused on children's metamemory" (Baker, 2013, para. 3). Flavell's definition of metacognition comprised both knowledge and control of ones cognition, in which knowledge is what a person knows about how they know and perceive information: Knowing how one learns best, what the person is supposed to do, and the best ways the person can accomplish a task (Baker, 2013). The control component considers how the person understands the process of knowing: The actual plans and strategies used to make progress in learning something. The process can include a using a specific method to learn a task, evaluating the progress made, and making changes to accomplish a task if necessary (Baker, 2013).

At the Spring 2013 Teaching Effectiveness Institute, Get Students to Focus on Learning Instead of Grades: Teach Them How to Learn, Dr. Saundra McGuire (Louisiana State University), offered ways to incorporate metacognitive strategies in the classroom. Dr. McGuire suggested that students who take an active part in thinking about their thinking, and analyze what they are doing, are better able to comprehend information which can lead to better grades. McGuire contends that metacognition is "the ability to think about one's own thinking, be consciously aware of oneself as a problem solver, monitor, plan, and control one's mental processing (e.g., "Am I understanding this material or just memorizing it?"), and accurately judge one's level of learning" (McGuire, 2013 citing Flavell).

McGuire stresses the importance of helping students who may be struggling "to make the grade" through individual learning consultations. During these meetings, McGuire suggests a series of steps in which you can motivate students to improve their academic performance. First, build a relationship with students by making them feel comfortable - helping them realize that they can be successful. Creating hope - show how previous students' low scores have been improved when they use learning strategies. In building confidence, have the student work on an activity that demonstrates how failing one part of the exercise can be turned into A or B level performance just by having them use one learning strategy. Guiding analytic reflection is where you ask the student to distinguish the difference between studying and learning, where they often reveal that they have been in study mode instead of learn mode. Introducing new ideas such as metacognition and Bloom's Taxonomy helps students connect what they know to strategies they can actually use and succeed. At the end of the consultation, you can build motivation to change by reviewing the usefulness of the strategies and encouraging students to actually use them to succeed.

Strategies

Below are strategies you can implement in your teaching that can make an immediate impact on students' learning to help them think about their thinking:

Establish a nurturing and engaging classroom environment where students are more likely to feel emotionally secure and confident that they can succeed

Create a community of scholars where students are accountable to each other (everyone must participate or there will be a quiz next class session; implement group quizzes)

Assign classwork and homework that require higher order thinking skills (refer to Bloom's Taxonomy)

Provide students opportunities to teach course content (these "mini lectures" will allow students to prepare and check their understanding of the content)

Assess students' learning frequently (formatively, throughout the semester through quizzes, questions, observations, discussions)

Provide frequent feedback to students (use rubrics; include substantive written comments on papers, projects, exams; make affirming in-class comments about student input, achievement, etc.)

Create learning goals for your students (to help them become better learners and keep them on task)

Show students how to use concept maps and graphic note taking strategies for textbook readings and class notes

Provide multiple opportunities for students to reflect on what is being taught (think-pair-share, journals, classroom discussions, questioning)

Teach students concrete learning strategies (demonstrate strategies in class and provide resources such as SQ5R, Study Cycle, Intense Study Sessions for access outside of class)

Use Skip Downing strategies, which are innovative ways to help students achieve greater academic success and retention

You can share the following strategies with your students to help them think about their own thinking (helping them learn and positively impact their grades).

Establish a set of personal learning goals (How do you learn?, How do you take tests?, etc.)

Create a self report card (self report cards allow students to think about their own progress in class)

Focus on the whys instead of the whats

Look at relationships between concepts and ideas

Think of analogies in your lives that relate to the new information being presented and how you are using it

Analyze and write down what specific learning strategies you will use between learning new information and taking a test of that information (SQ5R, Study Cycle)

Analyze what questions you missed on the first test and determine why you missed those questions

Solve problems without first looking at examples or solutions (this will help you think critically and creatively)

Use concept maps, notetakers, and other visual note taking devices to outline textbook readings and lecture notes (these devices can assist you in learning how to learn, helps with review, helps improve higher order thinking skills - refer to Bloom's Taxonomy)

Ask students the following question: "If you were asked to teach this class, what kinds of strategies would you use to help you learn new information?"

To introduce students to the importance of thinking about their thinking, McGuire suggests a Metacognitive Get Acquainted Activity by Simpson and Rush (2012) that can be quickly implemented in class. If conducted early in the semester, the results can also serve as formative feedback. This feedback can serve a number of purposes: first, that you value students' opinions; second, to help students focus on what they know and what they can do; and third, that you can adjust course content to meet students' needs before the semester ends. Here are the three open-ended questions:

1. What do you believe is important to understand and learn in [insert your discipline here]?

2. What do you believe to be critical characteristics of successful students in [insert your discipline here]?

3. How will you study and prepare for exams in [insert your discipline here]?
Simpson & Rush (2012, p. 268)

Developing a mindset that can help you motivate and encourage your students to think about their own thinking takes time and effort. Saundra McGuire (2013) recommends, therefore, the following points as you search new ways that can help make you a better educator:

Embrace challenges rather than avoiding them.

Persist when presented with obstacles rather than giving up easily.

Take the path to mastering tasks that require effort rather than considering them fruitless.

Learn from criticism rather than ignoring it.

Find lessons and inspiration in the success of others rather than feeling threatened by them.

Summary

"We can significantly increase student's ability to learn by teaching them the learning process and provide specific strategies; avoid judging student performance on initial performance; encourage students to persist in the face of initial failure; and encourage students to use metacognitive tools to help them succeed" (McGuire, 2013). Implementing metacognitive strategies in the classroom will help students transition from being passive to actively engaged learners who can impact their own learning both in and out of classroom.

Saundra McGuire recommended a number of books that you can use to help your students understand their own learning, all of which are available online.

How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School by Bransford & Brown (2000)

Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Dweck (2006)

Teaching Strategies in Developmental Education: Readings on Theories, Research, and Best Practice by Hodges, Simpson, & Stahl (2012)

The Genius in All of Us: Why Everything You've Been Told About Genetics, Talent, and IQ is Wrong by Shenk (2010)

References

Baker, L. (2013). Metacognition. Retrieved from http://www.education.com/reference/article/metacognition/

Flavell, J. H. (1976). Metacognitive aspects of problem solving. In L. B. Resnick (Ed.), The nature of intelligence (pp. 231-236). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Livingston, J. A. (1997). Metacognition: An overview. Retrieved from http://gse.buffalo.edu/fas/shuell/cep564/metacog.htm

Simpson, M., & Rush, L. (2012). College students' beliefs, strategy employment, transfer, and academic performance: An examination across three academic disciplines. In R. Hodges, M. L. Simpson, & N. A. Stahl (Eds.), Teaching study strategies in developmental education (pp. 265-275). New York: Bedford/St. Martin's Professional Resources.

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Getting Students to Think About Their Thinking

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Thinking about thinking. It's not a new concept and can be linked to higher order thinking in which a person takes "active control over the cognitive processes engaged in [their] learning" (Livingston, 1997, para. 1). The process of thinking about one's own thinking is often called metacognition, although by definition, metacognition is "cognition about cognition."

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Even Elementary students can learn about growing their brain.

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Examples From Elementary Classrooms

Diane Dahl of Texas, a participant in our brain-based teaching program, enjoys teaching her elementary students about the brain and strategies for learning. Students learn what neurons, dendrites, and axons are and how connections between neurons created by axons and dendrites create learning. Dahl emphasizes that each child has an amazing, unique brain and that through their practice and effort, all students will learn and remember a lot during the year. (Marcus discusses these brain basics and classroom implications in a short video.)

Next, Dahl tells her students that when we learn, it's important to connect new information with something we already know. She gives a couple of examples and then tells students they'll be using pipe cleaners and sticky notes to make a model of a brain and what they are thinking and learning.

Students each get three pipe cleaners to twist together in the middle to represent the axon, leaving both ends untwisted to represent dendrites. They then work together to build the representational brain structure, connecting all the axons by twisting a dendrite from one neuron around the axon of another, with guidance from the teacher. The structure represents the class's brain at the beginning of the school year. Throughout the school year, students create and add new axons to the brain, labeled with sticky notes describing new concepts they have learned.

In her own words, here are Dahl's tips for success:

As the year progresses, the brain model gets more complicated, and it's harder for second graders to add new axons (this might not be an issue for older students). At some point, I take over connecting the new axons.

I write the labels myself so we can all keep track of the new learning that is added to the brain.

We suspend the brain from the ceiling, but low enough that students can interact with it and read the labels. We choose a location away from busy traffic areas.

Whenever possible, we discuss how new learning relates to other content.

Some elementary teachers have students create their own individual models of a neuron that they can keep at their desk or take home as a reminder of their vast learning potential.

Examples From Secondary Classrooms

We know from discussions with secondary teachers that their students are motivated to learn when they are taught that their brains change as they learn and that they can get functionally smarter.

To teach this concept, teachers can draw a diagram of a neuron on the whiteboard to illustrate how synapses fire and form connections to other neurons in response to new experiences and learning.

Georgia teacher Jeremy Green, another participant in our program, frames the need to be metacognitive about one's learning by launching his AP psychology and U.S. history courses with a presentation on neuroplasticity, emphasizing that our brains can change and that we're always getting smarter as long as we are learning.

Green explains that he and his students talk about neuroplasticity early in the school year, discussing the idea that they're not just what they are at present-that hard work plus the use of proven learning strategies will affect their academic success.

Another high school teacher, Michael Fitzgerald, says, "There are things in life you're not in charge of, but you are in charge of you. When you accept that, your brain changes. And every time your brain changes, you grow." The Idaho teacher adds that this can be very empowering to students, explaining, "It also challenges them to take charge of their learning."

He incorporates into his teaching the ideas that learning changes the brain and that students can become progressively functionally smarter by thinking about their thinking with the goal of improving how they learn. These concepts are new to many of his students and pave the way for cognitive and metacognitive strategies that Fitzgerald explicitly introduces and models as a way for them to succeed at school.

More on these examples and a host of other related topics can be found in our book Teaching Students to Drive Their Brains, published with ASCD.

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Building a Metacognitive Classroom | Edutopia

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Diane Dahl of Texas, a participant in our brain-based teaching program, enjoys teaching her elementary students about the brain and strategies for learning. Students learn what neurons, dendrites, and axons are and how connections between neurons created by axons and dendrites create learning.

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Some strategies on how to keep track of goals and feedback.

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Some strategies on how to keep track of goals and feedback.

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http://www.theudlproject.com/blog/promoting-student-engagement-through-goal-setting

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Goal Setting and StudentAchievement: A Longitudinal Study

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Goal Setting and StudentAchievement: A Longitudinal Study

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https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/950f/a763640919cfd1086b1931d707182404c4d5.pdf

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http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/classroom_qa_with_larry_ferlazzo/2017/01/student-goal-setting-in-the-classroom.html

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Establishing and Communicating clear Goals

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Establishing and Communicating clear Goals

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http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/107001/chapters/What-will-I-do-to-establish-and-communicate-learning-goals,-track-student-progress,-and-celebrate-success%C2%A2.aspx

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Sal Khan speaking on teaching students to mastery not test scores.

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Sal Khan speaking on teaching students to mastery not test scores.

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https://www.ted.com/talks/sal_khan_let_s_teach_for_mastery_not_test_scores

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Great Expectations-Lessons and Strategies with Elementary Students

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Great Expectations-Lessons and Strategies with Elementary Students

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http://www.greatexpectations.org/lessons-and-strategies-for-goal-setting-elementary

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https://www.edutopia.org/blog/smart-goal-setting-with-students-maurice-elias

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How can we help students think about their own thinking and learning.

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Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.