META-COGNITIVE STRATEGIES DEFINITION

METACOGNITIVE STRATEGIES

Introduction

Learning strategies are defined as techniques for understanding, remembering, and using information that are intentionally used and consciously controlled by the learner (Pressley & McCormick: 1995). In addition, Wenden (1987a:7-8) says “learning strategies are the various operations that learners use in order to make sense of their learning”. Learning strategy is like footballers who use tactics in order to win a game, when they are in the stadium. Learners use learning strategies in order to learn something more successfully.

Since the mid-1970s, learning strategies in L2 have been at the centre of attention (O’Malley and Chamot, 1990). There are many language learning strategies which have been studied and classified in various ways by many researchers. Anderson (2003) classifies language learning strategies into seven major categories: cognitive strategies, metacognitive strategies, mnemonic or memory related strategies, compensatory strategies, affective strategies, social strategies, and self-motivating strategies. However, other researchers (O'Malley et al. 1985; Chamot, Barnhardt, El-Dinary, & Robbins, 1999; Cohen, 1996) use a fewer number. Generally, we can say that language learning strategy can be categorized into three main categories; metacognitive strategies, cognitive strategies, and socioaffective strategies (O’Malley & Chamot, 1990).

Metacognitive Strategies

Ø  Definition

Metacognition refers to thinking about one’s thinking or the human ability to be conscious of one’s mental processes (Nelson, 1996). Metacognition is a form of cognition and a high level thinking process that involves active control over cognitive processes (Wenden, 1998). While metacognitive strategies refer to the conscious monitoring of one’s cognitive strategies to achieve specific goals, for example when learners ask themselves questions about the work and then observe how well they answer these questions (Flavell, 1981, p. 273). Boekaerts and Simons (1995, p. 91) view metacognitive strategies as the decisions learners make before, during and after the process of learning.

Here are some metacognitive strategies that can be applied in language learning:

1.      Knowing your limits

2.      Self-Monitoring

3.      Modify

4.      Skimming

5.      Rehearsing

6.      Self-Test

There are four general steps in applying metacognitive strategies: Organize/Plan Your Own Learning, Manage Your Own Learning, Monitor Your Own Learning, and Evaluate Your Own Learning. Among the main metacognitive strategies, it is possible to include advance organizers, directed attention, selective attention, self-management, functional planning, self-monitoring, delayed production, self-evaluation.

Here is an example of the implementation of metacognitive strategy in teaching and learning process by Tanner (2012):

1.      Encouraging Students to Examine Their Current Thinking: “What do I already know about this topic that could guide my learning?”

2.      Giving Students Practice in Identifying Confusions: “What was most confusing to me about the material explored in class today?”

3.      Pushing Students to Recognize Conceptual Change: “Before this course, I thought evolution was… Now I think that evolution is ….” or “How is my thinking changing (or not changing) over time?”

4.      Providing a Forum in Which Students Monitor Their Own Thinking: “What about my exam preparation worked well that I should remember to do next time? What did not work so well that I should not do next time or that I should change?”

Ø  The Role of Metacognitive Strategies

a.       Metacognitive strategy enable learners to play active role in the process of learning, to manage and direct their own learning and eventually to find the best ways to practice and reinforce what they have learned (Chari et al., 2010).

b.      Metacognitive can increase students’ abilities to transfer or adapt their learning to new contexts and tasks (Bransford, Brown, & Cocking, p. 12; Palincsar & Brown, 1984; Scardamalia et al., 1984; Schoenfeld, 1983, 1985, 1991). They do this by gaining a level of awareness above the subject matter: they also think about the tasks and contexts of different learning situations and themselves as learners in these different contexts.  When Pintrich (2002) asserts that “Students who know about the different kinds of strategies for learning, thinking, and problem solving will be more likely to use them” (p. 222), notice the students must “know about” these strategies, not just practice them.

c.       Metacognitive can help students become aware of their strengths and weaknesses as learners, writers, readers, test-takers, group members, etc.  A key element is recognizing the limit of one’s knowledge or ability and then figuring out how to expand that knowledge or extend the ability. Those who know their strengths and weaknesses in these areas will be more likely to “actively monitor their learning strategies and resources and assess their readiness for particular tasks and performances” (Bransford, Brown, & Cocking, p. 67).

d.      Metacognitive can directly affect the process and the outcome of their learning (Boekaerts, Pintrich, & Zeidner, 2000; Bolitho et al., 2003; Eilam & Aharon, 2003; Mokhtari & Reichard, 2002; Palmer & Goetz, 1988; Victori & Lockhart, 1995; Zimmerman & Schunk, 2001; Purpura, 1997, 1998). Metacognitive awareness rising can improve the level of students’ performance and by implementing metacognitive teaching in educational process; desirable educational goals can be achieved.

e.       Metacognitive strategies increase learner autonomy and its direction toward more individualized instruction (Fewell, 2010).

Conclusion

There are many language learning strategies which have been studied and classified in various ways by many researchers. Generally, we can say that language learning strategy can be categorized into three main categories; metacognitive strategies, cognitive strategies, and socioaffective strategies. A metacognitive strategy is the decisions learners make before, during and after the process of learning. There are four steps in applying metacognitive strategy; planning, managing, monitoring, and evaluating. Metacognitive strategy has many advantages in learning process. One of them is it can increase learner autonomy and its direction toward more individualized instruction.

References

O’Malley, J. M. & Chamot, A. U. (1990). Learning strategies in second language acquisition. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Pressley, M., and McCormick, C.B. (1995). Advanced educational psychology for educators, researchers, and policymakers. New York: HarperCollins

Ridley, D.S., Schutz, P.A., Glanz, R.S., and Weinstein, C.E. (1992). Self-regulated learning: the interactive influence of metacognitive awareness and goal-setting. Journal of Experimental Education,

Wenden, A. (1998). Metacognitive knowledge and language learning. Applied Linguistics

Wenden, A. L. (1987). Conceptual background and utility. In A. L. Wenden & J. Rubin (Eds.), Learner strategies in language learning, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

http://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/metacognition/ accessed on 2 July 2014