Teach Them to Teach Themselves

Here is a thought worth carrying into every classroom: a teacher can create favourable conditions for learning, but cannot do the learning for a child. The learner has to do the mental work. Our long-term purpose, then, is not simply to teach today’s lesson. It is to help children become their own teachers. That capacity is called self-regulated learning, or S R L. It means learners monitor their thinking, evaluate their progress, and adjust what they do next. A child notices, “I can recite this definition, but I cannot explain it,” and decides to reread, ask a question, or try another example. That small pause is learning how to learn. We can make those pauses visible. In a reflective journal, a student can return to an earlier entry and add, “This is what I understand now.” And when student teachers observe a lesson in triads, the observation matters not only because it is recorded, but because colleagues talk and think together about what they saw. Reflection turns experience into learning. Motivation matters here, but so does volition. Motivation is the desire to reach a goal. Volition is the determination to continue when the work becomes difficult. Intrinsic motivation comes from interest or satisfaction; extrinsic motivation comes from an outside reward or consequence. And mastery goals, learning to become more competent, support S R L better than performance goals, which focus on looking successful or outperforming others. Assessment can either support that habit or interrupt it. Black and Wiliam distinguish summative assessment, assessment of learning, such as grades, from formative assessment, assessment for learning. Formative assessment is diagnostic. It helps us see what students understand, then adapt teaching and next steps. Tomorrow, try three things. Use short, frequent quizzes, with specific comments on errors and how to correct them. Use think-pair-share, then ask for a one-minute summary at the end of class. And invite self-assessment: “What was our learning goal? Where am I now? What will I do next?” These are not extra activities. They are, you know, a way of gradually handing learning back to its rightful owner. Thank you for listening.