Opportunities for reflection (metacognition)

Opportunities for student reflection lead to self-assessment and revision skills, which increase student learning. The following DLC resources support this specific element of powerful teaching.

Teaching Resources

ALPs: Lesson Reflection Sign in for access to this resource: At the end of each ALPs lesson, students are asked to reflect on their learning and to write two sample problems that reflect their understanding.

Thinkfinity: Search: Search on the keyword "reflective," selecting a content area and level. (Note: Hits for the science and mathematics content areas include the term "reflective" in ways that have nothing to do with metacognition.)

INTIME: Learning Element: Links to video clips of lessons that include a student "reflection" component. Scroll down the list to find clips for the level and/or content area you are interested in.

Digital Tools

Portfolio: Electronic portfolios are a creative means of organizing, summarizing, and sharing artifacts, information, and ideas as well as personal and professional growth. The reflective process of portfolio development can be as important as the final product.

Peer Review: An online workspace for discussion and group work where students can post, review, and comment on documents, projects, or assignments, or work together to author a document. Peer Review encourages student-to-student interaction and discussion, leading students to reflect more deeply on their own work as well as that of their peers.

Discussion Boards: Online discussion boards where teachers can post content-related, classroom specific questions, asking students to reflect on current topics and concepts. Student responses can be designated as private, giving students who otherwise might be reluctant to contribute to class discussion an opportunity to freely express themselves.