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Known knowns & unknown unknownsFacilitating metacognition in the online classroom
Dr. L. Roxanne Russell, Georgia State University
Ummm…Donald Rumsfeld?
What is metacognition?
There are known knowns; there are things we know that we know. There are known unknowns; that is to say, there are things that we now know we don't know. But there are also unknown unknowns; there are things we do not know we don't know.
Benefits of Metacognitive Strategies For your courses
Increased material comprehension Better alignment of responses to
assignments Better discussions More clearly articulated arguments
Lifelong Increased ability to learn independently Better critical thinking skills Better interdiscpilinary application of
knowledge
Online discussions
Complaints & problems with online discussion
Praises & benefits of the online classroom
Benefits of Online discussions
In writing Time to prepare Record of learning stepping stones
Participation requirements Graded Guided
Be the expert, Think like a novice What have you learned recently? What was your
approach? What did you need? What stands out in
your memory? Why?
Discussion Mining
Focus on one or two objectives Choose a learning goal
Mine the classroom Misconceptions Preconceptions Tangents Epiphanies Levels of confidence
Backtrack from goal
Introduction Strategies
Predicting outcomes What information will you need to
successfully answer this discussion question?
Misconception/Preconception check Use true/false or definitive statements to
ask students to commit to knowledge or opinions
In-progress Strategies
Self-questioning What question must you ask to continue
this process or solve this problem? What questions do you want to ask me or a peer about this process?
Self-challenging Allow choices, then question. Why did you
make this choice? Easier or more challenging? If you could change your choice now, would you?
Wrap-up Strategies
Self-assessing learning Rate your learning experience from 1-10.
Why did you give yourself this rating? Learning reflection
Have students examine all configurations Known knowns, known unknowns, unknown
knowns, unknown unknown unknowns
Ideas
What thinking strategies are specific to your discipline and course objectives? e.g. the writing process, the scientific
method, flow charts, logical reasoning When are different steps appropriate?
How do you determine? How could you teach students about
these strategies and when to use them in your curriculum?
Barriers
What would make this approach difficult in your online discussions?
How can you determine if the approach is worth overcoming the barriers?
Benefits
How could this approach improve student learning?
Could this approach save you time?
Implementing
Determine learning goals Start weekly discussion threads
Establish high standards for participation grading (provide rubrics & examples)
Mine discussions Choose strategies to connect
discussions to goals Experiment and redesign
References Seminal
Flavell, J. (1979). Metacognition and cognitive monitoring: A new area of cognitive-developmental inquiry.American Psychologist, 34, 906-911.
Benefit Claims Bransford, J., Brown, A., & Cocking, R. (1999). How people learn: Brain, mind, experience, and
school. Washington, DC: National Academy Press. Schneider, W., & Pressley, M. (1997). Memory development between two and twenty. Mahwah, NJ:
Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Weinstein, C.E., & Mayer, R. (1986). The teaching of learning strategies. In M.C. Wittrock (Ed.),
Handbook of research on teaching (pp. 315-327). New York: Macmillan.
Application Darling-Hammond, L., Austin, K., Cheung, M., & Martin, D. (n.d.). Thinking about thinking:
Metacognition. Retrieved July 30, 2009, from http://learner2.learner.org/courses/learningclassroom/support/09_metacog.pdf
Kuhn, D., & Dean Jr., D. (2004). Metacognition: A bridge between cognitive psychology and educational practice. Theory Into Practice 43(4), 268-273.
Paris, S., & Winograd, P. (1990). How metacognition can promote academic learning and instruction. In B.F. Jones & L. Idol (Eds.), Dimensions of thinking and cognitive instruction (pp. 15-51). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Pintrich, P.R., McKeachie, W.J., & Lin, Y. (1987). Teaching a course in learning to learn. Teaching of Psychology, 14, 81-86.
Pintrich, P.R., & Schunk, D.H. (2002). Motivation in education: Theory, research, and applications. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice-Hall.