How to think about thinking
How to think about thinking
By Tessy Britton
Teaching young people to ‘think for themselves’ is an over-used phrase. In practice do we really teach them how to think for themselves, or do we just expect them to?
Metacognition means the capacity to ‘think about thinking’. Research indicates that metacognition is enabled by information about the function: to learn metacognitively, we need to understand what types of cognition there are to monitor. Without instruction about cognition itself, we are unaware of what types of thought patterns or thinking strategies we could pay attention to. As with other developments in pedagogical research there are inherent challenges of translating theory into classroom practice. Currently, there are numerous classroom-based research projects, but, as noted by The Institute for the Future of the Mind: “the number of significant programmes in the world that are building bridges between the ‘science of learning’ and classroom practice can be counted on one hand.”
A number of research projects focus on different teaching approaches to enhance metacognition, including pedagogical methods intertwined with subject material, and discreet ‘thinking’ lessons. Methods aim to promote an understanding of cognitive processes and practise the skills of monitoring and controlling of these processes. The RSA’s Opening Minds curriculum is an innovative example where metacognition is enhanced throughout the teaching practice by encouraging self-observation and self-reflection. The interest in metacognition is likely to continue to grow because it works: successful implementation has shown that enhanced metacognitive processing skills potentially go much further than study skills to increase learning autonomy and personalised and life-long learning.
Metacognition and personal development
My interest in metacognition increased significantly following the data analysis of a small qualitative action research project I conducted this year, teaching teenagers for personal development. The aim of the course was to give students (aged 14-16) scientific information about their underlying human functioning and its influence on social dynamics, communication and behaviour, specifically looking at cognition, emotions and physiology. The analysis of post-lesson interviews suggests that information about our underlying instinctual human functioning may inform and enable metacognitive processes relating to personal behaviour, in the same way that knowledge about cognition enables metacognitive monitoring and control of cognition.
The work of philosopher Michael Polanyi helps to explain the role of knowledge in stimulating and mediating observation. Polanyi analysed how medical students learn to interpret X-ray pictures. Only after months of learning about X-rays does the capability of seeing and interpreting the pictures develop. In a similar way, the interview analysis showed that students applied their new understanding of human functioning to their own life experiences, which helped them to interpret situations in more informed ways than they had previously. Further research may confirm in more detail that if taught in ways that stimulate specific cognitive learning processes, that an in-depth, scientifically researched understanding of human behaviour, can enable a person’s executive metacognitive ability to monitor and direct their behaviour.
Teaching how to learn
The analysis of the learning processes described by the students has fundamentally altered my thinking about what skills we can and should be teaching for personal development. What became evident was that students gained unique and individual knowledge through connecting lesson information with their experiences outside of the classroom. What I believe the evidence may point to is that we should consider more closely the benefits of understanding and teaching the learning processes which encourages students to self-develop social and emotional skills. This would invovle teaching students how to translate generic information about human functioning into meaningful self-observation and self-reflection of their own individual life experiences.
Social trends
The expansion of adolescent peer worlds shows that young people spend more time with friends and rely on them far more than previously. These trends are not intrinsically negative, but they do change the dynamics and can make life considerably more challenging for young people. There are indications that the pro-social signals and messages of adult influence just aren’t getting through to the same degree, which suggests that young people are increasingly required to make independent choices. Ensuring that these choices are as informed as possible seems of primary importance.
Extensive research already exists on how sensitive humans are to influences in their environment. Accordingly, adults try to create healthy, stable environments in which children and young people develop. Despite this dedication to creating caring environments the increases in mental and social difficulties highlight that our endeavours are not entirely successful. The rise in depression, self-harming and substance abuse indicate that traditional methods of positively influencing the lives of young people are becoming less effective. Further visible signs of anti-social behaviour such as violence and binge drinking are causes of great concern in a society that wishes the very best for young people. While some young people will need serious psychological intervention, I suggest that the majority of young people are not choosing to reject pro-social behaviour. They may instead be absorbing a range of social norms too unconsciously.
Individualism and autonomy
In the absence of substantially new approaches society continues to use what it knows of instinctual mechanisms to direct pro-social behaviour in young people. However, by relying consistently on high expectations and applying the traditional techniques of disapproval, sanctions, and even praise, to prescribe desired behaviour, adults may unintentionally be promoting behavioural conformity. Young people are manipulated by both the well meaning and the mercenary and when we consider that this knowledge of instinctual mechanisms is the same knowledge that the media, advertisers, politicians and peers employ to influence our opinions and actions, adults’ use of such unconscious mechanisms may deserve review, on both a philosophical and practical level. If adults continue to use the tools of influence with young people, rather than ensure informed autonomous thinking, they may be reinforcing the paradigm that young people should respond to the closest, strongest or most interesting voice. By continuing to ask young people not to conform to the negative aspects of youth culture and strongly promoting the value of community, adults may be reinforcing conformity in general – in this example to social behaviours we promote as positive ones.
Some social commentators blame individualism for signs that society may be becoming more selfish, and suggest that an increased emphasis on morality and community values may be the way to counter this trend. Persistent preaching about community cohesion can potentially lead to young people overvaluing the expectations, loyalties and social norms of a particular group, regardless of whether that group promotes their personal health and wellbeing or not.
As an alternative, new ways of enhancing informed autonomy in young people may hold the potential to increase their levels of freedom from the normative, negative, unconscious pressures of attempts within society more widely to manipulate individual choices and values, such as: consumerism; intolerance; celebrity look-good, feel-good culture; and gang violence. This independence of thought may help give young people the emotional and cognitive robustness to make their own confident choices, which ultimately creates the positive environments they themselves want. Although the behaviour changes are private and often subtle, my experiences suggest, without exception, that when young people have a good understanding of human functioning that supports personal skills, they choose to behave in pro-social ways.
Anthony Grayling described the dynamics of individualism very insightfully in a perspective paper on Social Evils and Social Good for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation in September 2008:
“… personal autonomy and responsibility, self-determination, and independence are in fact more likely to promote than to degrade concern for others, because any reflective individual recognises that individuals benefit from cooperation and mutuality….To stress the point ‘co-operation and mutuality’ are not ‘conformity and uniformity’; individualism is the rejection of the later, not the former.”
An integrated approach
There is ample evidence through the research agendas of ‘learning to learning’ and ‘deep learning’ to suggest that metacognition aids learning autonomy through self-reflection and self-direction. The work around metacognition and the cognitive mediation of knowledge about our personal behaviour is new, and needs further research to expand and understand. However, there are indications that this line of inquiry may support and protect teenagers’ development by effective, holistic, positive and considerably more respectful means. Young people need adult guidance and warm, supportive relationships, in stimulating and safe environments and this discussion about autonomy does not propose any relinquishing of this adult responsibility.
A more integrated approach, with an overarching framework of enhancing metacognition for both learning and personal development, has further important benefits. Expanding the research on metacognition potentially offers a new conceptual space, where researchers from many different disciplines may be able to contribute: a conceptual space that may also hopefully be exempt from other interest groups. By integrating personal development into the wider learning agenda and in this way effectively removing links with therapeutic methodologies and core principles, personal development may potentially inhabit a more comfortable and less controversial space within educational settings.
Additionally, researchers working at the highest academic level are still developing and changing thinking about relationships between emotions and cognition. We are still learning about the development of the adolescent brain itself. Given the multiple research perspectives it may be more advisable to offer young people an understanding of a wide body of research on human functioning, and teaching strategies that encourage the development of cognitive processing skills in order that they can learn more fully from their own life experiences.
While it is unlikely that teaching specifically to enhance metacognition will prove a cure-all, it has the potential to help young people interpret and understand themselves and their lives in a highly educated and informed way. It also possibly increases the chances of all young people becoming thoughtful, caring individuals - without the vigilant influence, authority or guidance of adults. In my opinion young people should be educated to safeguard their own wellbeing, develop their own sense of purpose and to be inspired by the exciting possibilities of being producers of their environment, not just its products. This principled approach offers a genuine possibility of educated, informed, autonomous adolescents choosing to be contributors and developers of society, rather than unconsciously or obediently following its influences.
Tessy Britton is Director of Thriving, a community platform, which aims to support new ideas, research and people working in social innovation and education.
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