Developing an understanding of the link between

Module 5
Developing an understanding of
the link between metacognition
and the acquisition of higherorder literacy skills
1
Module aims
• To develop understanding of the link between
metacognition and the acquisition of higherorder literacy skills.
• To consider PISA’s role in developing pedagogy
that improves learning and teaching.
2
Module objectives
• Review some key aspects of metacognition.
• Establish links between metacognition, higherorder literacy skills, PISA testing and effective
classroom practice.
• Consider the possible educational benefits of
using metacognition as an essential tool in the
development of higher-order literacy in twentyfirst century classrooms.
• Examine the extent to which nurturing higherorder thinking skills with higher-order literacy
skills leads to greater success in PISA tests and
improved quality in learning and teaching.
3
Thinking about thinking
Unlike cognition, which is merely the act of
knowing, metacognition is the learner’s
reflection about what he or she already
knows or is in the process of learning.
(Smith, 2004)
4
Thinking about thinking
This use of metacognition is essential to
ensure effective development of higherorder literacy in twenty-first century
classrooms and create new thinkers for the
future.
5
Metacognition and able learners
Higher order thinking does not necessarily
show itself in evidence of 'quick thinking',
but in their ability to use quick or slow
thinking when the occasion demands.
(Davison, Deuser and Sternberg, 1996)
6
To transcend cognition
• The term metacognition was introduced by
Flavell in 1976 to refer to 'the individual's own
awareness and consideration of his or her
cognitive processes and strategies' (Flavell
1979).
• It refers to that uniquely human capacity of
people to be self-reflexive, not just to think and
know but to think about their own thinking and
knowing.
7
PISA and metacognitive
approaches
Reading literacy as measured in PISA
requires learners to demonstrate their skills in
dealing with a wide range of texts, drawn
from different situations and approached from
a number of perspectives.
8
PISA and metacognitive
approaches
• The Reading for Change report (OECD, 2001)
focuses on two text formats:
– continuous
– non continuous)
• and three approaches to reading:
– retrieving information
– interpreting
– reflecting.
• In 2013 these remain the core aspects tested
by PISA.
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Task 1:
PISA reading
question
10
Task 1
What feature of the
movies caused the
people of Macondo
to become angry?
OECD, 2009
11
Approaching the question
• Explain the approach you made to answering the
PISA reading question.
• How did you access the text?
– Read it through.
– Skim the text.
– Re-read the text.
– Identify key words.
– Identify key themes.
• Where did you begin reading?
OECD, 2009
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Higher-order literacy
• Effective reading is concerned with a search
for meaning within an increasingly challenging
range of texts. Learners need to be aware that
their reading may serve a range of purposes,
including for pleasure, information and
instruction.
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Higher-order literacy
• Effective writing is concerned with
expressing information, ideas, thoughts and
emotions with clarity, coherence and fluency
in a wide range of forms and styles. It is
adapted to suit its audience and purpose and
is accurate in terms of spelling, punctuation
and grammar.
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Higher-order literacy skills
• An important step towards achieving higherorder literacy skills is higher-order speaking
and listening through which learners can:
– discuss what they have read and come to a
full understanding of a text
– rehearse and refine ideas before they write
– make use of assessment for learning
techniques which require them to evaluate
their own and each other’s work and to make
suggestions for improvement.
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Task 2:
Metacognition and
higher-order
literacy skills
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Which metacognative
skills did you use?
Critical
thinking
n
o
i
s
i
c
De
making
Prioritising
Questio
Making
connections
g
n
i
n
n
a
l
P
Visual
memory
Meta
memory
Applying
Setting
targets
Reflection
ni ng
Solving
Comm
u ni ca t
i on
Problemsolving
17
Which of the higher-order
literacy skills did you use?
Reading
Reviewing
Exploring
/
Organising vocabulary
g
n
i
s
i
n
a
g
r
o
re
Recognising
multiple levels
of meaning
Collating
Locating
n
i
c
n
e
u
q
e
S
Summarising
g
n
i
n
n
a
Sc
Absorbi
ng
informa
ti o n
Decoding
g
Writin
g
Comparing
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Overlapping skills?
Meta
memory
Locating
Writing
Metacognition skills
Higher-order literacy skills
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An ability to use knowledge
and skills
In 2013, PISA conceives of literacy as the
capacity of students to apply knowledge and
skills in key subject areas and to analyse,
reason and communicate effectively as they
pose, solve and interpret problems in a variety
of situations. PISA is forward looking, focusing
on young people’s ability to use their knowledge
and skills to meet real-life challenges, rather
than merely on the extent to which they have
mastered specific curricular content.
(OECD, 2010)
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Plenary: Using PISA
materials in the classroom
In pairs, discuss:
• the type of text and the higher-order skills which
the ‘Macondo’ task teaches and assesses
• the prior knowledge and elements of
metacognition that would have prepared a learner
for such a task
• whether or not you teach these skills in your
classroom
• to what extent the task suits a twenty-first century
learner.
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Task 3:
Audit of practice
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The whole-school approach
Watch the video clip where a teacher discusses
his experience of using metacognition and thinking
skills in the classroom.
• Identify an element of
practice that you would like
to explore further.
23
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDUyWAdTiq4
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Higher-order literacy: audit of
classroom practice
•
Using the audit sheets provided, indicate which
aspects of higher-order reading and/or writing
have been carried out in your classroom this
week.
25
Higher-order literacy: audit of
classroom practice
•
Work in pairs to identify one of the activities
you have ticked in your audit. Discuss with your
partner:
– the context of the activity
– the opportunities learners were given to
verbalise strategies used
– how you would deepen that engagement
in the future.
26
Personal pledge
•
What will you do to help
further develop learners’
higher-order literacy skills?
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References
• Davidson, J.E., Deuser, R. & Sternberg, R.J. (1996) in
Metcalfe, J. & Shimamura, A.P. (1996) Metacognition;
Knowing about Knowing. Cambridge, Mass: MIT
• Flavell, J. (1979) Metacognition and cognitive monitoring: A
new area of cognitive-developmental enquiry. American
Psychologist, 34, 906 – 911.
• OECD (2009) PISA 2009 Assessment Framework – Key
Competencies In Reading, Mathematics And Science.
• Smith, F. (2004). Understanding reading: A psycholinguistic
analysis of reading and learning to read (6th ed.). Mahwah,
NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
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Further reading
• Brown, A. L., and Smiley, S. S. (1978), The development of
strategies for studying text. Child Development. 49, 1076–1088.
• Fisher, R. (1998), ‘Thinking about Thinking: developing
metacognition in children’. Early Child Development and Care.
Vol. 141 (1998), pages 1–15.
• Flavell J., Green, F. and Flavell, E. (1996), Young Children's
Knowledge About Thinking Monographs for the Society for
Research in Child Development. Chicago: University of
Chicago Press.
• Kuhn, D. (2000), Metacognitive development. Current
Directions in Psychological Science. 9 (5), pages 178–181.
• OECD (2003), Learning for Tomorrow’s World – First Results
from PISA 2003 report.
• Metcalfe, J. and Shimamura, A.P. (1996), Metacognition;
Knowing about Knowing. Cambridge. Mass: MIT Press.
• Quicke, J. and Winter, C. (1994), 'Teaching the language of
learning', British Educational Research Journal. 20. 4 pages
429–45.
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Useful websites
• http://learning.wales.gov.uk/docs/learningwales/publicati
ons/130123nlnfinformationdocumenten.pdf
• www.philosophy-foundation.org/
• www.oecd.org/pisa/pisaproducts/pisa2009/PISA%202
009%20reading%20test%20items.pdf
• http://wales.gov.uk/docs/dcells/publications/101007co
mmunicationen.pdf
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