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Lessons from Good Language Learners

Edited by Carol Griffiths

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Chapter

7 - Metacognition and good language learners pp. 99-109

Chapter DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511497667.010

Cambridge University Press

7 Metacognition and good language
learners
Neil J. Anderson

Metacognition can be defined simply as thinking about thinking

(Anderson, 2002, 2005). It is the ability to reflect on what is known, and
does not simply involve thinking back on an event, describing what hap-
pened, and the feelings associated with it. Metacognition results in crit-
ical but healthy reflection and evaluation of thinking that may result in
making specific changes in how learning is managed, and in the strate-
gies chosen for this purpose (for a discussion of strategies, see Griffiths,
this volume).
Strong metacognitive skills empower language learners: when learners
reflect upon their learning, they become better prepared to make con-
scious decisions about what they can do to improve their learning.
O’Malley and Chamot (1990, p. 8) emphasize the importance of
metacognition when they state: “students without metacognitive
approaches are essentially learners without direction or opportunity to
plan their learning, monitor their progress, or review their accomplish-
ments and future learning directions.” Metacognition, in language learn-
ing, as illustrated in Figure 1 (see p. 100), can be divided into five primary
and intersecting components:
1 preparing and planning for learning
2 selecting and using strategies
3 monitoring learning
4 orchestrating strategies
5 evaluating learning.

Views of metacognition

In his great work Les Miserables, Victor Hugo wrote, “Where the tele-
scope ends, the microscope begins. Which of the two has the grander
view?” (Hugo, 1992, p. 767). The metaphorical telescope and micro-
scope are useful for looking at the concept of metacognition. The addi-
tion of a kaleidoscope to the mix provides a deeper understanding of
how metacognition is central to an understanding of good language
learner behavior.

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Metacognition and good language learners

preparing and planning for learning

evaluating selecting
learning and using
strategies

Metacognition

orchestrating monitoring
strategies learning

Figure 1 A model of metacognition

A telescopic view of metacognition

With a telescopic view of metacognition, we can get an overall view of
the five primary components (see Figure 1).

Preparing and planning for learning

Taking time to prepare for learning and plan what needs to be accom-
plished makes a major difference in learning. The activation of prior
knowledge is one way of preparing and planning for effective learning.
For example, research by Carrell (1983, 1984) and Carrell and
Eisterhold (1983) has clearly demonstrated that reading comprehension
and reading skills are enhanced when prior, or background, knowledge
is activated. Background knowledge includes all experience that a reader
can bring to a text: life experiences, educational experiences, cultural
experiences, knowledge of how the first language works as well as how
the second language works, and knowledge of how a text can be orga-
nized rhetorically. If learners do not have prior knowledge, it will be nec-
essary to build background knowledge prior to asking the students to
engage in the learning task.

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 Views of metacognition

Selecting and using strategies

The selection of appropriate strategies and knowing when to use them
to achieve a particular learning goal is an important aspect of metacog-
nitive behaviour. Many poor language learners are not able to choose
useful strategies and do not recognize when to incorporate these strate-
gies into their learning endeavors (Vann and Abraham, 1990). The
metacognitive ability of deciding when to use particular strategies indi-
cates that the learner is thinking and making conscious decisions about
the learning process. In order to select and use strategies, learners must
be familiar with the full range of options available to them. This empha-
sizes the importance of explicitly teaching strategies in the classroom, for
instance by the use of surveys or questionnaires (see implications for the
teaching/learning situation).

Monitoring learning
As learners develop the skill of selecting and using appropriate strategies,
the next aspect of metacognitive behaviour they develop is the ability to
monitor, listed by Rubin (1975) among the behaviors of good language
learners. Good language learners are able to recognize when they do not
understand and stop to do something about it. Teachers may need to help
their students develop monitoring skills, perhaps by means of journals or
think aloud protocols (as suggested under implications for the teach-
ing/learning situation).

Orchestrating strategies
Effective strategy use does not occur in isolation. Often we discuss the
use of a strategy as if it happens all by itself. Understanding the interde-
pendency of strategy use while engaged in a language learning task is an
important learning experience. Being metacognitively aware of strategy
use allows good language learners to integrate the use of various strate-
gies in a positive way. Again, surveys or questionnaires (see implications
for the teaching/learning situation) followed by discussion may help stu-
dents orchestrate their strategy use effectively.

Evaluating learning
Thomas Jefferson once said, “He who knows best, best knows how little
he knows” (Brainy Quote, n.d.). Good language learners must be able to
evaluate the efficacy of what they are doing. Poor learners often do not
evaluate the success or failure of their learning. They may not recognize

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Metacognition and good language learners

that they lack the ability to self-evaluate. Teachers may facilitate the devel-
opment of this metacognitive skill by means of evaluation forms, videos,
or self-assessment (see implications for the teaching/learning situation).

A microscopic view of metacognition

A microscopic view of each of these five central components of metacog-
nition takes us into five classrooms in different parts of the world.

Preparing and planning for learning

In a recent advanced level, integrated skills class taught by Emma Torres
at the Centro Cultural Costarricense Norteamericano (CCCN) in San
José, Costa Rica, Ms Torres engaged the learners in a discussion to
get them thinking about the topic for the next writing assignment:
Differences Between Men and Women. Before doing any writing on the
topic, Ms Torres allowed the learners to individually identify any gender
differences. The class then discussed the differences with a partner. After
one minute of discussion with a partner, Ms Torres signalled to the class
to change partners. A second conversation about the differences between
men and women began. This pattern continued until students had inter-
acted with four or five different class members. As the students move
from the oral activities to writing their compositions, they are preparing
themselves with the knowledge they need for their compositions. The
value of the metacognitive component comes when Ms Torres explicitly
points out to the class that this activity will facilitate their writing.

Selecting and using strategies

Joy Janzen, formerly of Moorehead State University, in Minnesota, in the
United States, regularly engages her advanced ESL writing students in the
selection and use of metacognitive strategies. Professor Janzen engages
the class in explicit discussions about what strategic writers do when they
write. In particular, she focuses the writers’ attention on how to select
and use particular strategies for focusing on the audience. The class is
learning to select and use particular strategies by thinking recursively and
using questions during the writing process.

Monitoring learning
In yet another classroom, this time at the English Language Center at
Brigham Young University, in Provo, Utah, in the United States,
Mark Wolfersberger teaches an advanced-level business English course.

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 Views of metacognition

Mr Wolfersberger allows students to practice monitoring strategies for

beginning the writing process through four different writing topics. He
has asked the students to prepare to write on the following topic: “Do
you agree or disagree with the following statement? People should read
only those books that are about real people and established facts. Use
specific reasons and details to support your answer.” Chen Su Chun from
Taiwan shared with her classmates how she monitored her strategies. She
immediately thought that she agreed with the statement and proceeded
to write without clearly thinking through her reasons for agreeing. As
she wrote, she had problems putting together a coherent essay. She
stopped writing and realized that the strategy of beginning the writing
task without thinking through her reasons was not working for her, and
she had to choose another strategy. Chen Su decided to make a list of
reasons why she agreed and disagreed with the topic. With this strategy,
she realized that she could identify more reasons for disagreeing than for
agreeing and that she now had some specific content to write about.
Mr Wolfersberger summarized the value of the metacognitive act of
monitoring progress, and encouraged the students to stop when they had
a problem and redirect their efforts.

Orchestrating strategies
For a view of orchestrating various strategies, we go to the University of
Ottawa, in Canada. Professor Laurens Vandergrift is actively engaged in
research and teaching of metacognitive strategies as they are linked with
the skill of listening comprehension. Professor Vandergrift’s pedagogical
setting is working with learners of French as a target language. He is cur-
rently working with Andy, a native speaker of Kurdish, who spent six
years of his life in a refugee camp before emigrating to Canada. Andy has
just listened to an audiotape in French and is now listening to the infor-
mation a second time. As he listens, he verbalizes the various strategies
that he orchestrates while listening to a radio announcement in French.
Andy uses his background knowledge of radio call-in contests, he iden-
tifies vocabulary that he does not know, he guesses at that unknown
vocabulary, he expresses doubts about his comprehension. In short,
Andy can identify what he knows as well as what he does not know by
orchestrating various strategies.

Evaluating learning
Professor Tim Murphey at Yuan Ze University in Chungli, Taiwan, has
developed a pedagogical technique that he calls Learner Self-Evaluated
Video. Learners are regularly videotaped during class and asked to watch

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Metacognition and good language learners

and self-evaluate their speaking performance in English. Professor

Murphey has asked the students to share with a partner what they
believe their final grade should be for the speaking skills enhancement
course for future English teachers. Students are videotaped and then self-
evaluate their justification of their final grade. Katie and Dina, two stu-
dents in Professor Murphey’s class, share with each other what they have
learned from the course and what they each believe their final grade
should be. They engage in healthy, yet critical self-evaluation. They are
not superficial in their self-evaluation. They do not automatically say
that they deserve an “A” in the course. Nor are they hypercritical of the
imperfections they may still be experiencing.

A kaleidoscopic view of metacognition

A kaleidoscope allows us to view a changing pattern. That is the way it
is with teaching and learning – no two class sessions are the same.
Metacognition is not any one of the five elements discussed here in iso-
lation. It is the blending of all five into a kaleidoscopic view. Each of the
five metacognitive skills interacts with the other.
Metacognition is not a linear process moving from preparing and
planning to evaluating. More than one metacognitive process may be
taking place at a given moment during a learning task. The kaleidoscopic
view of metacognition allows us to understand how language acquisition
can be accelerated when learners and teachers use metacognition to
improve the teaching and learning of language.

Implications for the teaching/learning situation

If we want to develop metacognitively aware language learners, we must

have metacognitively aware teachers. Understanding and controlling
cognitive processes is an essential skill that classroom teachers can
develop in themselves and in the learners with whom they work. Rather
than focusing learner attention only on language issues, educators can
structure a learning atmosphere where thinking about what happens in
the learning process will lead to stronger language skills.
Although researchers such as Skehan (1989), Vann and Abraham
(1990) and Wenden (1998) have suggested that explicit teaching of lan-
guage learning strategies does not ensure a successful learning experi-
ence, Dhieb-Henia (2003) concludes that metacognitive training can be
an effective tool for teachers to use in helping learners improve their lan-
guage skills. The promotion of metacognitive behaviour can therefore be
a valuable use of instructional time.

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 Implications for the teaching/learning situation

There are various pedagogical tools which are available to classroom

teachers to help develop metacognition. I will discuss six such tools. Each
tool can serve as a stimulus for each of the five components of metacog-
nition and when used regularly in the classroom, along with other tools,
can help learners develop the critical but healthy awareness of their
development as good language learners.

Language learning surveys or questionnaires

A language learning survey or questionnaire can be a very effective way
of providing an initial introduction to learners regarding the importance
of developing good language learning skills. These surveys also provide
an excellent way of integrating into a classroom discussion all five of the
components of metacognition. Various surveys are available, for instance
the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning or SILL (Oxford, 1990),
the Survey of Reading Strategies or SORS (Mokhtari and Sheorey, 2002;
Sheorey and Mokhtari, 2001), and the Perceptual Learning Style
Preference Questionnaire (Reid, 1995).

Language learning journals

Riley and Harsch (1999) advocate the use of journals which can serve as
a tool for reflection. Teachers can gain insights into learners’ metacogni-
tion as appropriate prompts are prepared for students to respond to.
Sample prompts include:
My learning and practicing plans for next week are:
This week I spoke English with these people:
This week I made these mistakes:
I would like help with:
My self assessment of my performance on today’s task is:
Journal prompts that encourage learners to engage in all of the com-
ponents of metacognition can be prepared.

Learner self-evaluated video

Murphey (2001) and Murphey and Kerry (1996) outline a very effective
tool to engage learners in metacognition and practice habits of the good
language learner. Learner self-evaluated video allows learners to use a
video of a speaking opportunity as a tool to evaluate progress and
growth in language development. Each student comes to class with a
videotape. The teacher has two video cameras and four video recorders
set up so that four students can be videotaped at the same time. The

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Metacognition and good language learners

teacher writes a speaking prompt on the board and invites the students
to choose a partner and begin the conversation. After two minutes stu-
dents change partners and have another conversation for two minutes.
During each practice opportunity the teacher invites four students to
come to the videoing area. The conversations of these learners are
recorded. The learners leave the class with a videotape of one conversa-
tion and an assignment sheet to do something specific with the videotape.
This classroom tool can be extremely useful in engaging learners in spe-
cific conversational tasks and engaging learners in reflecting on how they
can improve. The learner self-evaluated video method requires sharp
metacognitive skills and thus helps learners develop the skills through
repeated practice.

The groupwork evaluation form

Most language learning programs engage learners in some type of group-
work in order to provide more speaking opportunities to learners.
However, it is rare for teachers to have learners evaluate the use of group-
work. Certainly, if learners work together for an extended period of time
with the same group members, students should be asked if the group-
work is meeting the intended purposes. (See Angelo and Cross, 1993, for
an example of a groupwork evaluation form.)

Think-aloud protocols
Think-aloud protocols have traditionally been used as a research tool for
identifying the mental processes that learners engage in while undertak-
ing a learning task. Think-aloud protocols can also be a very effective
pedagogical tool to strengthen metacognitive awareness (Anderson and
Vandergrift, 1996; Anderson, 2004). Perhaps the greatest value of think-
aloud protocols as a pedagogical tool is that learners are able to articu-
late their thinking and help each other in the task of language learning.
The teacher does not have to be the one to suggest all of the possibilities
available to learners. Learners are often more willing to try something
that their classmates suggest because they know that their classmates are
engaged in the same task of becoming good language learners. The
purpose of the think-aloud protocols is to allow learners an opportunity
to verbalize the thought processes they engage in while completing a spe-
cific task in the language classroom. Through the verbalization, learners
become more aware of their strategies and what changes they need to
make in order to be better language learners.

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 Questions for ongoing research

Self-assessment on classroom tasks and tests

I use a four-part self-assessment tool when classroom quizzes and tests
are administered. Learners respond to parts A, B, and C immediately fol-
lowing the test. Part A asks the learner to review each item on the test
and indicate whether they believe they got the answer correct, incorrect,
or whether they are not sure. Part B asks them to estimate what they
believe their total score will be on the test. It is interesting that learners
who are not very metacognitively aware of their performance often do
not make a connection between parts A and B and sometimes produce
very different responses to these two parts. Part C of the self-assessment
is used if an oral interview has been conducted. In order for the oral inter-
view self-assessment to be effective, learners need to know how they will
be scored on the interview. Part D of the self-assessment is perhaps when
metacognitive skills are used the most. When the tests are corrected and
returned to the learners the self-assessment form is also returned.
Learners are asked to assess whether they correctly estimated their per-
formance and how they plan to prepare for the next test.
All six of these tools serve as ways for students to become more
metacognitively aware of how to become better language learners. By
integrating these and other tools into the repertoire of activities used in
the classroom, learners get consistent exposure to the components of
metacognition.

Questions for ongoing research

Telescopes, microscopes, and kaleidoscopes provide us with special

perspectives on metacognition. Which provides the best view? Just like
most theories and concepts in the profession of language teaching, we
cannot rely on one by itself. We need the perspective of all three to fully
understand metacognitive behavior. Ongoing research is required which
integrates the three views in a range of situations and with a range of
learners of varying characteristics (for instance of different ages, genders,
and cultures).
Research has shown that good language learners make frequent use of
a wide range of metacognitive strategies (O’Malley and Chamot, 1990;
Griffiths 2003). Therefore, the teaching of metacognitive skills may be a
valuable use of instructional time to help learners engage metacognitively
with the learning task and thereby learn more effectively. How can these
metacognitive skills best be taught? A great deal more research is
required, considering individual and situational variables, before we can
answer this question with any authority.

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Metacognition and good language learners

Conclusion

Many language learners struggle to know how to study effectively

and make progress in developing their language skills. Some of these
learners rely on teachers and others, or on a structured language
program to tell them what to do and how to study in their target lan-
guage. But good language learners develop metacognitive skills
which enable them to manage their own learning, thereby rendering
themselves less dependent on others or on the vicissitudes of the learn-
ing situation.
While learning from a good teacher in a well-structured language
program is very important, it is perhaps even more important for these
learners to have meaningful learning experiences on their own. Good
teachers and well-structured language learning programs cannot possi-
bly teach learners everything they need to know. Getting good results
from studying depends on learners going beyond what teachers and pro-
grams provide and developing the kind of metacognitive behaviour
which will enable them to regulate their own learning.

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