One of the most valuable and important terms you will meet as an educator is ”metacognition” – the ability to understand one’s learning process. We tell students WHAT they should learn, but rarely teach them HOW to learn. The secret is in the HOW and that’s the purpose of Learn Talks and having brief metacognitive conversations with your students. That puts them in a position to better cope with the stress and demands of learning and turns them into more self-sufficient learners who understand their learning process. The mini-lecture here describes more. Then follows an example of a Learn Talk.
You can talk to kids about their learning at a very early age. You’d be surprised at how well three-year olds can explain how they learn. This is one of my favorite interviews. It’s with Felix, ten-years old. Isn’t it remarkable how he can explain his learning? I truly believe in the importance of metacognition and how helpful it is for students to be aware of their learning process. Well, that’s what this course is al about, so sure I believe in the idea about having conversations about learning.
