Instructional Strategies for Improving Self-Monitoring of Learning to Solve Problems

Abstract

Being able to regulate their own learning process is becoming increasingly important for students at all levels of education (OECD Programme for International Student Assessment, 2009). From early on in children’s school careers, children are stimulated to be aware of what they are learning and to make choices about their own learning processes. Self-regulated learning can be defined as a self-directive process by which learners are able to improve their learning performance using the capabilities they already have (Zimmerman, 2008). According to the model of self- regulated learning by Winne and Hadwin (1998), monitoring and control are central processes to self-regulated learning. To effectively regulate their own learning process, students must be able to monitor their progress toward learning goals and use this information to regulate (i.e., control) further study (Metcalfe, 2009; Winne & Hadwin, 1998). For example, if students are trying to solve a math problem, it is important for them to keep track of their conceptual understanding of the problem and the steps of its solution procedure (i.e., monitoring), and to use this to determine whether more problems should be studied or practiced in order to grasp the procedure for solving this type of problem (i.e., control). Monitoring is assumed and has been shown to inform control (Kornell & Metcalfe, 2006; Metcalfe, 2009; Serra & Metcalfe, 2009; Thiede, Anderson, & Therriault, 2003; Winne & Hadwin, 1998), and can therefore be considered a crucial aspect of self-regulated learning.