In the life of a modern human, it is common to follow the standard trail when it comes to learning: first, we learn basic survival skills, social interaction and language from our parents. Then we continue formal education in school, in many cases, it is followed by University or college degree. The more insisting ones get a master or even Ph.D. and after this somehow adults are not expected to learn new things any longer. For most people finishing formal studies is the end of the path, when we should consider it only the beginning.
The faculties of higher education are supposed to show us how to learn properly, give us a framework for critical thinking, teach us where to look for information and ways to filter it efficiently. Supposing that after finishing formal education a person actually knows something is naïve. “Education is not something you can finish” – Goes famous quote by Isaak Asimov - “What’s exciting is the actual process of broadening yourself, of knowing there’s now a little extra facet of the universe you know about and can think about and can understand.” Learning in itself is a skill, so the question is – how can we learn to learn better?
There is a term in educational psychology that is called meta-learning. John Biggs described meta-learning as being aware of and taking control of one’s own learning (Biggs, 1995). Meta-learning is understanding and adaptation of learning in itself on a level higher than merely acquiring subject knowledge. Hence, a person aware and capable of meta-learning can access his or her learning approach and adjust it according to the requirements of a specific task. (Lemke, 2015)
Meta-learning is tightly connected to meta-cognition - a term used to describe analyzing one’s own thinking and decision-making processes. In some people, this capacity is intrinsic and easier accessed than in others. These individuals are capable of robust evaluations of their decisions: they are often aware of their mistakes even without explicit feedback, and report levels of confidence in their decisions that correlate with objective performance. (Yeung, 2011)
2 systems are used in metacognitive mechanisms:
System 1 is believed to encompass a set of different systems that operate in parallel, delivering swift and intuitive judgments and decisions in response to perceptual inputs in a way that is unconscious, automatic, and guided by principles that are, to a significant extent, innately fixed and universal among humans.
System 2 reasoning is conscious and reflective and is thought to proceed in a slow, serial manner, according to principles that vary among both individuals and cultures. (Fletcher, 2012)
System 2 can be held subject to intentional control and guided by normative beliefs about proper reasoning methods. Its primary role is to override reflective responses issued by system 1. Unlike more ancient and intuitive System 1, the system’s 2 reflective reasoning is an acquired habit that can be cultivated consciously by an individual. This type of cognition regulates thinking and learning and consists of three self-assessment skills: planning, monitoring, and evaluating. (Fletcher, 2012)
Meta-learning suggests a lifelong process. It requires self-direction and self-regulation. It is necessary to participate in environments that are created for learning and are moderated by educators, even though providing guidance can create “a passive learning environment.” However, engaging actively in the evaluation of the presented information, learners can switch into the self-directed learning mode. In a scenario of a classroom, a teacher’s task is to provide students with a space that allows learners to make decisions about the information they will experience or learn and provide them with the structure for self-regulated learning. Self-regulated behaviors include planning, monitoring, attention, and effort. (Medina, Castleberry, 2017) Both planning and monitoring are also components of meta-cognition. Planning requires setting task-specific goals. Once students plan, they need to monitor the process. Monitoring refers to paying attention to one’s performance; it is a critical component of self-regulation because it provides awareness of one’s knowledge level, which then leads to changes in one’s effect, cognition and behavior. It also provides feedback to where the learner needs to focus their resources. (Kanfer, 1989)
Several methods can be used to enhance meta-learning processes. First of all, it is important to understand that one should prioritize the importance of thinking about the learning process over the content. Contrasting information, activating prior knowledge and connecting it to the new material, finding new resources for learning, recognizing patterns and associations – all of it is a part of the process of learning how to learn efficiently. By constantly evaluating their metacognitive skills, learners become more aware of this process and its impact on learning and become more capable of sense-making in every new domain.
Here are some practical questions you can ask yourself to enhance the self-learning process:
What am I seeking to learn or be able to do?
What do I currently think about and know about this topic? Is this accurate?
How am I making personal meaning of the content?
In what ways am I monitoring my learning and progress toward mastery? Where am I along the path to reaching my learning targets?
To what extent am I developing responsibility?
What have I learned? How can I take my learning to the next level?
Quality learning should be treated as both science and art; age and acknowledgment in the professional field should not be the reason to not continue educating yourself constantly. Educating yourself is a lifelong project. Meta-learning is a skill that will provide you with the base and structure to acquire knowledge in any domain and convert it into actual value. The more you expose yourself to the unknown, the steeper each new learning curve will be. Controlling this process will have a huge positive impact on your overall capacity to make decisions and solve problems efficiently. There is plenty of factual evidence that the active development of meta-cognitive and meta-learning processes is tightly connected to optimizing all cognitive structures in humans and helps to adapt to the uncertain, complex and ever-changing environment.