The EEF’s Metacognition and Self-Regulation guidance report suggests that explicitly teaching pupils to plan, monitor and evaluate their learning can increase pupil independence in the classroom. Simply put, it encourages pupils to use what they know and apply it to their learning, monitoring their progress and adapting their approach accordingly as they go.

For some pupils, particularly those from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds, this might not happen automatically. Getting into the habit of planning questions that encourage learners to plan, monitor and evaluate their learning can be a good starting point. These might be asked directly or modelled by the teacher during explicit teaching as a ​‘think aloud’.

New planning tool

Research indicates that approaches to developing pupils’ metacognition need to be closely aligned to curriculum subjects.

This editable planning tool could be useful for teachers when considering subject specific questions to scaffold pupil’s metacognition and encourage reflection.

For example, when teaching pupils to paint a self-portrait in an art lesson, the teacher might plan the following questions to support pupil independence.

By explicitly teaching metacognitive strategies through carefully planned questions and prompts, teachers can support pupils to become more confident and independent in their learning.

Take a look at this original EEF blog: Supporting pupil independence through questioning.