How do we get our students to own their own learning?
Recently I had the pleasure of coaching a colleague and supporting her to complete an impact cycle in her classroom. One of the challenges many of us face as teachers, is how to get students to own their own learning. By this I mean how do we encourage every learner to want to progress and know where they’re at in their own learning journey. We worked together and discovered three questions (from Hattie and Timperley feedback model) to support students to stop and reflect on where they are at: The three questions are:
- Where am I going with my learning?
- How am I going?
- Where to next?
Just by asking these questions regularly during the lesson, the idea is that students start to see themselves in the drivers seat, and they have more ownership over their direction in learning. They are to reflect on how they are progressing with a learning task.
When I visited 3C earlier in the week, they were so excited to share with me their goal of owning their own learning and how they were going about it. They excitedly explained how and when the questions are asked and eagerly discussed their importance. Check out Facebook to hear it from their perspective!
I also did some professional reading around ‘Student Agency’ and discovered Seven factors for optimizing it! (Source: Great Teaching By Design – John Hattie)
Care: Take an interest in the learner
Confer: Listen to the learner’s perspective
Captivate: Make learning stimulating and fun!
Consolidate: Review and revise learning often
Clarity: Clear up confusions as they arise for the learner
Challenge: Press the learner to think deeply
Classroom management: ensure the learner is on task.
I’d love you to ask your children at home if they feel like they own their own learning. Share these questions or the 7 C’s and have a conversation about learning!
If we can have 100% of our students tuned in to their own learning needs, we really can change the world!
Have a wonderful week
Warm Regards
Nicki Prentice