Why and How to Teach Learning Strategies and Self-Reflection about Learning
/As teachers, we have quite a bit of control over how we teach topics to our students, the activities we give them to enhance learning, and the preparation materials we give out before unit tests, midterms, etc. But we don’t have much control over what students do with what we give them as soon as they leave class for the day (and sometimes even in our rooms). Some students seem to know instinctively how to assimilate the new information and skills they learn in class, while others have parents who give them helpful study tips and fill in any blanks in their understanding. But unfortunately, others leave class confused about the topics covered and lack the tools (or the sense of agency) to improve their understanding.
While teaching learning strategies is often left to the realm of special education, in my experience most students benefit from gaining some insight into their own learning habits and practices. In fact, I think teaching kids how to learn is equally if not more important as teaching them what to learn. As a former classroom teacher turned tutor, I’ve realized that by giving kids insight into their own learning process we are setting them up to be able to approach future material confidently and to learn it successfully throughout their lives.
My goal in tutoring is to help students develop skills and habits that eventually make tutoring unnecessary, and I’ve found that one of the most powerful ways to do that is by getting them into the practice of being self reflective about their own learning. And it doesn’t take much in the way of formal teaching; with a series of questions and mostly student-driven discussions students become much more conscious of their approach to learning and about specific strategies that they can use to learn more effectively.
Clearly, one-on-one discussions with students are a great way to help them reflect on their learning, but unfortunately the classroom setting doesn’t give us much one-on-one time. I wanted to find a way to bring this beneficial practice into the classroom, so I’ve created this no-prep student self-evaluation that teachers can use and reuse throughout the year to get students thinking about the way they learn.
Research Backed Learning Strategies
There are also some general principles about learning that are supported by research that we can pass along to students (informally, no lesson required). One is “distributed learning” (aka the spacing effect), meaning that learning is much more effective when studying is broken into smaller chunks over time than when crammed. This is especially helpful for students who have attention difficulties and may feel frustrated or bad about their need to take breaks while studying—the research shows that this is actually a better way to learn!
While old adages about studying may have said “use a familiar and comfortable study spot,” studies have shown that learning is actually enhanced when the surrounding context is varied. This means that studying in different locations, listening to different music or a variety of background noise, and with any other environmental variations can actually be beneficial.
Another learning strategy shown to be extremely effective is testing or “retrieval practice.” After spending some time studying the material, it’s best to put it away and see if we can recall it. Retrieval practice can include a formal in class assessment, or a homework assignment, but quizzing ourselves or having someone else quiz us is a great learning strategy that is supported by many studies. In How We Learn, author Benedict Carrey summarizes what’s been learned from research on retrieval practice in a 1/3 to 2/3 rule: the fastest way to learn something is to spend 1/3 of your time memorizing it and 2/3 of your time reciting it from memory.
Testing is studying, of a different and powerful kind. —Benedict Carrey
I find it helpful to share these types of strategies with students whenever possible, since it can help them make their study time more efficient.
Questions for Learning Self Reflection
Here are some questions that I want my students to be asking themselves in order to become more conscious of their learning habits and strategies. I usually take them through these types of questions a couple of times initially, and then I just remind them to ask themselves periodically.
How did I learn about this topic initially (lecture/presentation, assigned reading, activity, research project, etc.)?
How actively did I participate in the initially learning? What grade would I give myself for my efforts? (paying close attention, taking notes, completing the task well, reading carefully, asking questions, etc. vs zoning out, doing the minimum, skimming/skipping the reading, letting others do the work, etc.)
How much did I learn (as a percentage of what I need to know or be able to do)? What grade would I give my current understanding of the topic?
Could I explain the topic thoroughly to someone who knows nothing about it? Could I show someone step by step how to solve this type of problem or complete this task successfully?
What methods usually work best for me to learn something new?
What tools, resources, and practices can I use to get my knowledge/skill set to 100% with this topic?
Steps for Learning Self-Evaluation
Here are some steps to take students through in order to help them evaluate their own understanding of a topic. These can be used in any subject area.
Identify the topic as specifically as possible.
State what we know, what we don’t know, and what we need to know, keeping in mind that as we proceed we may uncover more aspects of the topic that we don’t know about
Identify the learning method: lecture with slides? Assigned reading? Research project? Informational video? Etc.
identify other learning methods/tools/resources that might be helpful or have been helpful in the past: asking the teacher for help, asking a friend, watching a video online, reading more online, rewriting my notes, doing additional practice, etc
Evaluate how much we know now: 50%? 75%? 100%? Etc.
Repeat the steps until understanding is at or near 100%.
Incorporate Learning Self-Reflections in the Classroom
I think self-reflection is one of the most important practices that we can pass along to students. Becoming more reflective about our own learning habits and strategies, as well as taking ownership over our learning, is a lifelong skill with so many benefits. I’ve created a resource that can be used with students in grades 6+ in any subject area for this purpose. It has three different self-evaluations: pre-semester, pre-assessment (to be used at the end of a unit but prior to a unit test), and post-assessment (for students to reflect on their learning during the unit and their preparation for and performance on the unit test).
Click on the photo below to get this resource and please let me know what you think about teaching learning strategies and self-reflection about learning!
