LEARNING TO LEARN
LEARNING
Towards self-regulated learning
Mark Beverley Director of Institute of Teaching & Learning
It feels somewhat self-evident to state that a core aim in education is to foster the capacity of young people for self-efficacy . In part this means developing knowledge of subject disciplines in a way that can be independently applied , but it also requires understanding of how to learn . The Education Endowment Foundation ’ s Teaching and Learning Toolkit , published in 2011 , makes recommendations of the most effective teaching and learning practices – based on extensive literature reviews . At the top of its list , with an impact score of 8 months of additional progress , comes Feedback . In close second , however , with an impact score of 7 months progress , are ‘ Metacognition and self-regulation ’, which are said to have ‘ high impact for very low cost , based on extensive evidence .’ ( Education Endowment Foundation , 2022 ).
This might sound promising , but of course it is important to make accurate sense of this evidence and consider the most effective ways in which its implications can be implemented . Feedback , for example , can have negative impact , as well as positive , and Dylan Wiliam ’ s work on formative assessment has in been misrepresented over time - a victim of ‘ lethal mutation ’ - so that in some contexts it has come to signify almost the opposite of what was intended ( Christodoulou , 2017 ).
One issue relates to how we define , and therefore understand , the language in which effective and ineffective practice are described . It is not uncommon for the terms ‘ metacognition ’, ‘ self-regulation ’ and ‘ self-regulated learning ’ to be used interchangeably , for example , which does not particularly help us to consider their implications in a way that attends closely to the evidence . In their recent book , Fear is the Mind
Killer , Mannion and McAllister separate the terms in the following way :
Metacognition is monitoring and controlling your thought processes ; self-regulation is monitoring and controlling your feelings and behaviours ; and self-regulated learning is the application of metacognition and self-regulation to learning ( Mannion and McAllister , 2020 ).
This helpful definition takes account of the importance of emotion and more affective features of learning , in addition to cognition . How students feel about themselves and about others can make a significant difference to how well they learn , and coming to understand this relationship is an important step towards self-regulated learning .
If we agree on the meaning of these different terms , the next step of course is to consider how and where their implications could be realised practically . One way is to make use of where there is flexibility in the taught curriculum . The various non-examined courses we teach at Sevenoaks – including Society and Change in Year 7 , Critical Thinking in years 9-11 and the PSHE programme provide ample opportunity for interrogation of the different ways in which we think about ourselves and the world . Some strands of this programme develop critical thinking and cognition , whilst others focus more on elements of wellbeing and ways in which our feelings can be more clearly understood . This means encouraging the development of self-awareness , as well as personal responsibility , along with thoughtful exploration of the ways in which both personal and social values are adopted . As a result , students are made more conscious of themselves and the world in a metacognitive sense , as well as more able to regulate their thoughts and feelings .
Activity that supports the development of self-regulated learning also happens through the Middle School Diploma . At intervals , students are asked to reflect on ways in which their learning has developed through years 9-11 and to consider choices they might make that will improve learning outcomes in the future .
However , although this works well for some , the reflective tendency does not come naturally for many , and needs to be taught . To ascertain ways in which this might happen most effectively , we undertook a smallscale research project through the course of this year . It was designed to elicit reflection on meaning and purpose in education , as well as investigate how far particular interventions might encourage reflective habits and a more self-regulated approach to independent learning . Students in various Year 9 tutor groups were given a base line questionnaire that asked for responses to questions such as ‘ What do you think the purpose of education is ? How would you define the middle school
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