Opportunities for guiding development: insights from first-year life science majors’ use of metacognition
ABSTRACT Students with strong metacognitive skills are positioned to learn and achieve more than peers who are still developing their metacognition. Yet, many students come to college without well-developed metacognitive skills. As part of a longitudinal study on metacognitive development, we asked...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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American Society for Microbiology
2024-12-01
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| Series: | Journal of Microbiology & Biology Education |
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| Online Access: | https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/jmbe.00053-24 |
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| author | Julie Dangremond Stanton Stephanie M. Halmo Rayna J. Carter Kira A. Yamini Deborah Ososanya |
| author_facet | Julie Dangremond Stanton Stephanie M. Halmo Rayna J. Carter Kira A. Yamini Deborah Ososanya |
| author_sort | Julie Dangremond Stanton |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ABSTRACT Students with strong metacognitive skills are positioned to learn and achieve more than peers who are still developing their metacognition. Yet, many students come to college without well-developed metacognitive skills. As part of a longitudinal study on metacognitive development, we asked when, why, and how first-year life science majors use metacognitive skills of planning, monitoring, and evaluating. Guided by the metacognition framework, we collected data from 52 undergraduates at three institutions using semi-structured interviews. We found that first-year students seek study recommendations from instructors, peers, and online resources when they plan their study strategies. First-year students struggle to accurately monitor their understanding and benefit when instructors help them confront what they do not yet know. First-year students evaluate the effectiveness of their study plans at two specific points: immediately after taking an exam and/or after receiving their grade on an exam. While first-year students may be particularly open to suggestions on how to learn, they may need help debunking myths about learning. First-year students acknowledge they are still learning to monitor and welcome formative assessments that help them improve the accuracy of their monitoring. First-year students may be primed to receive guidance on their metacognition at the points when they are most likely to evaluate the effectiveness of their study strategies and plans. Based on our results, we offer suggestions for instructors who want to support first-year students to further develop their metacognition. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-710e8ccfe9694ba49fdab17b2ad1695c |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1935-7877 1935-7885 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | American Society for Microbiology |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Microbiology & Biology Education |
| spelling | doaj-art-710e8ccfe9694ba49fdab17b2ad1695c2025-08-20T01:58:45ZengAmerican Society for MicrobiologyJournal of Microbiology & Biology Education1935-78771935-78852024-12-0125310.1128/jmbe.00053-24Opportunities for guiding development: insights from first-year life science majors’ use of metacognitionJulie Dangremond Stanton0Stephanie M. Halmo1Rayna J. Carter2Kira A. Yamini3Deborah Ososanya4Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USADepartment of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USADepartment of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USADepartment of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USADepartment of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USAABSTRACT Students with strong metacognitive skills are positioned to learn and achieve more than peers who are still developing their metacognition. Yet, many students come to college without well-developed metacognitive skills. As part of a longitudinal study on metacognitive development, we asked when, why, and how first-year life science majors use metacognitive skills of planning, monitoring, and evaluating. Guided by the metacognition framework, we collected data from 52 undergraduates at three institutions using semi-structured interviews. We found that first-year students seek study recommendations from instructors, peers, and online resources when they plan their study strategies. First-year students struggle to accurately monitor their understanding and benefit when instructors help them confront what they do not yet know. First-year students evaluate the effectiveness of their study plans at two specific points: immediately after taking an exam and/or after receiving their grade on an exam. While first-year students may be particularly open to suggestions on how to learn, they may need help debunking myths about learning. First-year students acknowledge they are still learning to monitor and welcome formative assessments that help them improve the accuracy of their monitoring. First-year students may be primed to receive guidance on their metacognition at the points when they are most likely to evaluate the effectiveness of their study strategies and plans. Based on our results, we offer suggestions for instructors who want to support first-year students to further develop their metacognition.https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/jmbe.00053-24metacognitionself-regulated learningfirst-year studentsbiology |
| spellingShingle | Julie Dangremond Stanton Stephanie M. Halmo Rayna J. Carter Kira A. Yamini Deborah Ososanya Opportunities for guiding development: insights from first-year life science majors’ use of metacognition Journal of Microbiology & Biology Education metacognition self-regulated learning first-year students biology |
| title | Opportunities for guiding development: insights from first-year life science majors’ use of metacognition |
| title_full | Opportunities for guiding development: insights from first-year life science majors’ use of metacognition |
| title_fullStr | Opportunities for guiding development: insights from first-year life science majors’ use of metacognition |
| title_full_unstemmed | Opportunities for guiding development: insights from first-year life science majors’ use of metacognition |
| title_short | Opportunities for guiding development: insights from first-year life science majors’ use of metacognition |
| title_sort | opportunities for guiding development insights from first year life science majors use of metacognition |
| topic | metacognition self-regulated learning first-year students biology |
| url | https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/jmbe.00053-24 |
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