1.1.1. Metacognitive strategies to empower learners to plan, monitor and reflect on their own learning

Metacognition consists of two complementary processes, which are (1) knowledge of cognition, and (2) the regulation of cognition. The knowledge of cognition refers to learners’ awareness of themselves as learners, i.e., understanding the way they learn, the factors that influence their performance or the different learning strategies adopted according to the situation. Regulation of cognition refers to the learners' ability to set goals, plan and monitor learning and self-assess learning outcomes. It also refers to the learning strategies to choose and the decisions and changes to make. It is important for you to engage learners in active collaboration and discussion from the very first classes and this could be achieved by designing engaging learning activities. 

How to create these learning activities and what digital tools can support them?

You can promote metacognitive strategies that foster learners’ awareness about their own learning by:

➢ inviting students to contribute to the course plan development by asking them to introduce themselves and share their prior knowledge or experience in a given topic,

➢ encouraging learners to reflect on and share what are their learning strategies and what learning methods they like the most,

➢ indicating what they will learn in this course,

➢ inviting learners to share their learning expectations or needs.

➢ encouraging learners to create a study plan with the learning goals set and learning strategies described;

➢ allowing students to contribute to the learning by choosing what topics they would like to explore more, what tasks to complete and when;

➢ helping learners determine individually what they already know and what they need to learn to complete an assignment;

➢ fostering self-reflection and self-assessment on how they succeeded and if they achieved their personal learning goals;

➢ encouraging learners to review and evaluate their learning process and learning strategies that they applied.

Strategy example 1. Fostering self-reflection about the learning

There are Moodle-based or external tools that can support the above-mentioned activities. For example, a Padlet tool may be embedded, allowing the creation of a shared ‘wall’ where all students can share their learning experiences (fig. 1).

Figure 1. An example of a Padlet tool to foster learners’ metacognition and collect data on learning experiences (activity created for this training material, Tamoliune, 2022)

Such activities may raise students’ self-reflection on how they learn and what is important for them to learn. These data can inspire teachers on how to deliver teaching and learning to support learners’ performance, engagement and SRL. In addition, according to the data collected, you can review the pre-designed course content, decide if it covers learners’ expectations and if other topics should be added or not. In such a way, you will show your students that you expect them to participate actively. Make sure that you analyse the needs and expectations expressed by your students during the course and provide feedback on whether or not they can be met. 

Strategy example 2. Deconstructing and “thinking aloud” the learning process

You can help students plan and think of their learning by modelling your own thinking process. For example, when introducing an assignment, deconstruct the process of the assignment development by giving step-by-step instructions on how to complete the task. You can use the Moodle Assignment tool to provide the details by deconstructing the process in the description section (fig. 2).

Figure 2. Example of a ‘deconstructed’ task description leading students to understand the steps involved in the assignment development (adapted from Volungeviciene et al., 2021, p. 140)

Strategy example 3. Promoting learners’ critical thinking and reflection

When designing a course, bear in mind that learning activities should inspire critical thinking, personal interest and original understanding. These activities have to trigger learners’ awareness of how they learn and, at the same time, inform you on how learners progress with the course. 

For example, when you want to promote critical thinking and reflection among students, it is good to ask them an open and challenging question. You might use a Moodle discussion forum to stimulate students with different questions, allowing them to reflect and share their knowledge on a given topic. In such a way, students have the possibility to self-assess their knowledge and learning process (fig. 3), and to observe if they are as actively involved in learning and discussions as their peers are. Discussion questions could also be pre-designed in a way that students could answer them while being in-class or at any given time stated by the teacher.

Figure 3. An example of pre-set questions on Moodle Forum (Trepule & Tamoliune, MA study course “Concepts of adult education”, Vytautas Magnus University)

At the same time, you may review the pre-designed course content and decide if it covers learners’ expectations and if there should or should not be any other topics added. In such a way the teacher demonstrates that students will be expected to actively participate in classes. It is important to ensure that you analyse learners’ needs or expectations and provide feedback on whether it is possible to cover all the expectations expressed throughout the course.  

Of course, VLE-based tools, like Feedback, Quiz, Wikis, also can be used when designing metacognitive learning activities. Moreover, these tools collect traces of learners’ performance. More on how to set up Moodle-based tools and how different tools may be used to collect and generate data is introduced in subunit 1.3.