The three students discussed in detail in this chapter—dan, cassie, and nia—have this in common:

Prepare Icon

Prepare: As discussed in Chapter 4 and the Week 4 Instructor Guidance, intentional learning requires focus, commitment, time management, and personal skills. In addition to general study habits, developing sophisticated personal learning strategies will help you own your learning behaviors. Return to the chapter and critically read the scenarios of Dan, Cassie, and Nia in section 4.2, The Importance of Self-Regulation and Metacognition in section 4.3, and the concept of FIT: forge,intensify, and tether in section 4.4. Note how Dan, Cassie, and Nia all lack an understanding of how to be mindful, intentional learners. Their study habits are riddled with common issues, ranging from self-doubt, fear of not doing things right, to overconfidence.

Reflect Icon

Reflect: Carefully review Worksheet 4.1 in Chapter 4. Reflect on your own internal and external success factors and on your academic performance over the past three weeks. Analyze how a lack of self-regulation can hinder academic success and how, conversely, being intentional can lead to increased success and deeper learning. Your honest evaluation begins the process of developing personalized learning strategies and allows you to examine your readiness to take the next steps toward becoming an intentional learner.

Write Icon

Write: You will address a learner scenario in your response. Your assigned learner is indicated below based on the first initial of your last name:

· Dan – Last name A – G- (Cody)

Consider what your assigned learner could have done to be more successful. Explain two things that the learner could have done to use his or her Learning Patterns more intentionally.

Reflect on the past three weeks.

· Choose one of your Learning Patterns and

· Identify a situation where you could have used the chosen Pattern with more intention in this class and explain how you could have forged, intensified, or tethered to be successful. OR

· Identify a situation where you actually did use the chosen Pattern with more intention in this class and explain how you actually did forge, intensify, or tether to be successful.

· List your LCI scores in your response.

Your initial post should contain a minimum of 250 words.

4.1 The Need for Effective Study Habits

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Good study habits are crucial for academic success. This is a message you have heard from the time you entered schooluntil now, as you enter or re-enter the adult learning world of online courses. Many nontraditional students entercollege long after their previous study habits have faded from their minds. They may have never learned how to beststudy at all; their old habits may have been ways to just barely cope with the work.

Now the need for effective study habits becomes urgent and immediate. Of course you can turn to the Internet whereyou will find hundreds of sites filled with standard suggestions—have a set place, study when rested, take breaks, dothe hardest work first, study with a group or a buddy. There are plenty of blogs relating how others have madestudying work for them. But they are not you! Studying is a universal requirement if you plan to succeed as a student;however, studying strategies are very personal. There is no "one size fits all" in study techniques.

Factors to Consider

There are, however, some proven actions associated with effective study. For example, you will, indeed, want todesignate one or more physical locations that work well for you. You will want to assemble your vital study resources(a daily planner or a digital app for organizing each day’s schedule and the technology your courses require) andestablish a specific time frame for study.

Woman uses a smartphone to study in the library.

Wavebreak Media/Thinkstock

Where do you think is the best place for you to study,and with which digital device?

Adults who are successful students establish the parameters fortheir study by consciously designing a schedule and a locationwhere their studying will occur, and they frame their studytime around their work and family life. But beyond that, howare you going to address the point of da Vinci’s message? Howdo you generate a desire to study?

The desire to study comes from your belief that you arecapable of doing the mental work of learning and that theeffort you put forth to learn will yield both tangible rewards(supportive feedback, good grades, academic awards) andintangible rewards (feelings of accomplishment, pride, and asense that you can take on even greater learning challenges).This new sense of self-awareness as a learner does not occurby chance. It occurs because you have prepared your mind touse its Learning Patterns with intention to read, investigate, ponder, and complete specific learning tasks using yourpersonalized learning strategies. This heightened sense of self-efficacy creates a growing desire within you to succeedover and over again.

In the e-college scene, multiple learning tasks—some more challenging than you have previously experienced—confront you. Among the first thoughts that may come to mind are, "How can I meet these expectations? I have neverdone this before! How can I meet the requirements of being a college student on top of everything else in my life? Howcan I use my time most efficiently? How am I going to create the desire to be that successful student who learns withintention?"

As you learned earlier in this text, intentional learning requires focus, commitment, and personal skills. So not only areyou going to use general study habits, but also very sophisticated personal learning strategies. You are going to useyour new sense of self as a learner to remove the inertia of self-doubt. You are going to fan the internal flame of desireto attempt a new set of study behaviors that you have intentionally chosen, and you are going to actualize your beliefin your ability to learn in order to succeed at a level you may never have before attained.

Learning How to Learn

As you recall from Chapter 1, the requirements of learning have changed significantly over the past one hundred years.Where once learning to memorize large amounts of information was the mark of a successful student, today having theknowledge, skills, and judgment to select and use data accurately, interact with others appropriately, and use newtechnologies efficiently are important for student success. Today you are required to learn how to learn—that is, movewhat is outside your head to inside your mind, working with it by reading critically and writing critically, studying andowning it, and then presenting your newfound knowledge, understanding, and insights for discussion, feedback, andrefinement.

Creating Your Personal Learning Tools: Information InterviewChecklist

Maria Sanchez has come to understand that knowing information isn’t enough. You need to study theinformation and determine its accuracy and its relevance. You need to be able to present your ideaslogically and thoughtfully. This became very clear to Maria when she faced the challenge of writing her firstmajor paper in 20 years after returning to school.

"The information I included in my paper needed to be detailed," Maria explains, "but I also needed tounderstand why I was including it and what the information really added to the point I was making."

To accomplish this, Maria, using her Sequence, made a checklist of the key points she wanted to make inher paper. The checklist had each point—plus a sentence explaining why it was important to include in thepaper. Those sentences revealed to Maria when and how a point would really contribute to her argument,and they also showed her when she went astray and needed to leave out a tangential detail. They wereessential for Maria’s newfound success in writing. "I called it my information interview checklist. It allowedme to see at a glance if the information I was using would help make my point or not."

"I have learned that there is a lot more to writing than just putting words up on the screen. I need to takecharge of how I go about expressing my thoughts and ideas. I need to understand the information that I amincluding and think through its purpose."

You, too, may find this kind of checklist to be a more useful personal learning tool than a traditionaloutline. It doesn’t have to be a list on lined paper, either; if Confluence leads your Patterns, you may wantto do this on unlined paper so you can sketch out your points in a free flow rather than structured graphic.If you use Technical Reasoning as your lead, you may develop your key points in blocks of thought andthen sketch their placement to build your case or make your point. Just be sure to ask yourself why youwish to include each detail as you jot it down; this step allows you to see whether or not it truly supportsyour main idea.

This chapter is about much more than developing good study habits. It’s about owning your right to be called a collegestudent who is a part of community of learners in a degree program. Belongingness in the college setting is a powerfulsense of being a part of something very important to your future. With that sense of belongingness comes certainresponsibilities:

· You own your learning behaviors.

· You commit to the academic time demands of college life.

· You commit to taking the time to be a critical reader, a critical writer, and a critical thinker.

· You use your self-awareness as a learner to self-regulate your learning behaviors.

· You experience success; you feel more capable; your sense of self-efficacy grows.

· You take the next step toward becoming an intentional learner by developing your mental muscles throughpersonalized strategies.

· Your success breeds even greater success.

· You make learning work for you. In the words of da Vinci, you "study with desire."

Only after assuming these responsibilities as an intentional learner can you confirm for yourself that you are in theright place—that you belong.

Worksheet 4.1 is intended to help you examine your readiness to take the next step toward becoming an intentionallearner.

Worksheet 4.1: Checking Your Status as an Adult Learner

Click on the worksheet to access the interactive PDF.

Worksheet providing an exercise to distinguish what kind of learner the student is. The worksheet includes directions and charts to fill out in two parts. In Part A, students are asked to provide to what degree certain external factors affect them as a learner in three categories: Does Not Affect Me, Somewhat Affects Me, and Strongly Affects Me. In Part B, students are asked to provide to what degree certain internal factors affect them as a learner in the same three categories.

Source: © Let Me Learn, Inc.

Not all adults enter college prepared to meet the responsibilities of being an intentional learner. However, none needsto remain unprepared. With effort, discipline, and persistence, every student can improve his or her abilities. It is theeffort you put forth as a student that ultimately determines your success. College coursework is not a test of how"smart" you already are or how much you already know. It is an opportunity to develop and expand your ability tothink, read, speak, and write in ways that have an effect on other people.

4.2 Three Student Scenarios
Over the course of this chapter, you will follow three different adult learners. You will meet them at crucial points intheir enrollment, and you will track their conscious decisions to remain as they are or develop their personal learningstrategies and tools. Their decisions will ultimately determine their growth and transformation into intentional learnersor college dropouts.

Dan
Dan has an assignment to do. He meant to start it at the beginning of the week right after it was posted, but has keptputting it off. His deadline is now very close, so he is anxious to get it done.

At 8:30 p.m., after having something to eat and seeing that the rest of the family is watching television, he heads to hisstudy corner in the bedroom. He settles in, starts up the computer, and realizes he can’t find the notebook in which hejotted down ideas for the assignment. While he thinks about where he last saw the notebook, he checks the sportsscores, scans his email, and looks up a website on tires that are on sale (tires: just another thing on the never-ending,unaffordable to-do list).

Man sits on couch and watches television.

iStockphoto/Thinkstock

Dan cannot seem to focus on his work and procrastinatesinto the night because he does not feel competent in hisabilities. How can he remedy this?

It’s now 9:16 p.m., and Dan is feeling tired and could usesomething cold to drink to wake himself up. He wanders out tothe kitchen, passing the family room and pausing to see what’shappening in the latest episode of his favorite show (which heis now missing because he put off doing his assignment earlierin the week).

Ten minutes later and back in front of the computer, herepositions himself and, instead of finding his notebook orgenerating new ideas, he is struck by the fact that he has noreal idea of what he’s supposed to be doing. Besides, afterreceiving feedback on the last assignment (which was nowherenear as positive as he expected), he doubts that he can besuccessful on this one. He thought he had done exactly whatwas being called for, but the grade he received suggestedotherwise. Now he is beginning to think he might not be ableto complete the course. As a result of the repetitive, self-doubting thoughts, Dan stares glumly at the screen for thenext half hour. He accomplishes nothing.

Even re-reading the pages assigned in his text doesn’t trigger any thoughts. He doesn’t take in anything and the wordson the screen swim before his eyes. Maybe this isn’t the best time to start this work, he thinks. Maybe tomorrow wouldbe better.

Dan spends the rest of the evening and late into the night attempting to do what could be done in 90 minutes or less.He stops eventually, not because his work is finished, but because he feels tired and insecure, and can’t stand to thinkabout the assignment any longer.

Dan as a Learner
Dan suffers from a basic problem with his self-esteem. Consciously, he wants to do his work; unconsciously, the task isa terrifying chance to confirm that he is incapable, which is what he thinks he is. There’s a voice in his head, of whichhe’s probably unaware, that goes something like this: "This is going to take me ages. I can’t really do this. Others willprobably ace this. Not me. I hate writing, even if it’s just one paragraph. My thoughts never look right on paper." Manystudents like Dan are convinced that they are inferior to others. Little do they know that many other people havesimilar self-doubts.

The second reason Dan struggles with his work is because he needs to be more strategic in the use of his study habits.He makes some effort, but because he is using generalized rather than personalized study habits, he gets tired, givesup, and reinforces his belief that he is not capable.

Are You Dan?
Dan (S25, P18, TR30, C14)

· Does all right at first, but rarely moves beyond doing the minimum. Self-doubt builds until he gets behind andoverwhelmed.

· Isn’t comfortable self-reflecting or thinking about himself as a learner.

· Doesn’t ask for help; instead, hides behind his need to appear self-sufficient.

· Is a person of few written or spoken words.

· Is very practical and seeks to "fix" a situation using his own approach to problem solving.

· Experiences a high degree of self-doubt; he believes that he:

· doesn’t have enough to say.

· cannot see the relevance of the assigned task.

· gets the task done (not well, but done).

· Begins to doubt his ability to complete his degree.

Cassie
Cassie has an assignment due. She doesn’t want to miss the deadline or post a paper with errors. Cassie is aconscientious student, and between her family responsibilities and her work, she runs a tight schedule. In order to gether studying completed in a timely manner, she sets up a schedule and "works" it. First she hurries to get a meal onthe table for her two daughters, listening intently to them talk about their day; then she checks their homework; andfinally, she gets them settled in bed, with just enough time left for her to get to her own homework.

Cassie works at the kitchen table. She likes to have music on when she is studying, but tonight she turns it down lowso she can comprehend the information that is on the screen in front of her.

Woman sits with laptop and papers at kitchen table.

Juan Silva/Digital Vision/Getty Images

Cassie is a perfectionist—which Learning Pattern do youthink is Use First for her?

She is focusing on the directions for the assignment, but she isconcerned because she doesn’t understand what they areasking her to do. The same thing happened when she wascompleting the last assignment, and she ended up guessingrather than knowing what the expectations were. Her guesseswere only partially correct. Cassie cringes as she thinks aboutthe feedback she received, which included the suggestions thatshe use fewer words, select words more carefully for greaterclarity, and provide more support from her sources. She wasalso told that she had wandered from the topic and hadnumerous spelling and punctuation errors.

The clock is ticking, but Cassie’s mind isn’t. She reads and re-reads the directions for the assignment. She studies each word,trying to figure out what the instructor is looking for. She needsto get started, but her fear of failure holds her back. Finally, she begins to write. After a few minutes she stops, staresat the screen, and then deletes every word, certain that she is doing it all wrong. Midnight is approaching, and she hasyet to make real progress. Panic sets in.

Cassie as a Learner
Cassie is stuck in the classic "be perfect" and "please me" modes that affect learners who are taught early in life thatmistakes are a sign of imperfection and that pleasing the teacher is what success in school is all about. Instead ofdeveloping the perspective that mistakes are a part of life, and you can learn a great deal from your mistakes, Cassie isconvinced that mistakes are to be avoided at all costs because they show others your shortcomings and inabilities. As aresult, Cassie is gridlocked in her fear of not doing what is expected—perfectly. Like Dan, she is losing valuable timestuck in a learning quandary of whether to do what she thinks is expected or do nothing at all. Because she doesn’tknow with certainty what is expected, she hesitates to start the task at hand. She haltingly begins the task, but thendeletes what she’s done. She has no sense of intention, and she is losing her desire to study as she unproductivelyspins her wheels.

Are You Cassie?
Cassie (S20, P29, TR10, C22)

· Wants to please the instructor by showing what she knows.

· Reads the syllabus and weekly requirements, but can get tangled in the specifics and anxiety about whether she isdoing things correctly.

· Gathers lots of information, but worries whether it is the right information and whether she has enough.

· Can’t organize her words and thoughts; is overwhelmed by all the information she has gathered.

· Finds it difficult to edit her own work because she has taken time to select each word so carefully.

· Experiences a high degree of fear of being wrong. She is afraid that she:

· doesn’t have the right information.

· doesn’t understand the information well enough to write about it.

· won’t express her thoughts clearly or accurately.

· Begins to doubt if she is ever going to complete her degree.

Nia
Nia is also a nontraditional student who has just entered the world of college studies online. But unlike Dan and Cassie,her life is not encumbered with family. Currently, she is transitioning from 10 years in the military (three deployments)to civilian life. She has wasted no time finding employment while she pursues her college degree.

Nia is a "can-do" person whose service years have been devoted to military personnel administration, primarily payroll.She sees herself as a multitasker—someone with a number of balls in the air at all times. She is quick on her feet,straightforward, and deliberate. You always know where you stand when you work with Nia. Some would describe heras a force to be reckoned with.

Tonight, with her study schedule in hand, she sits at her newly purchased desk in front of her state-of-the artcomputer, which is loaded with the latest software. She has the same assignment to complete as Dan and Cassie, andthe same deadline looming. Like them, she finds the directions for the assignment unclear. But unlike them, she isdriven. Just because the instructor has not made the assignment clear is no reason for Nia to be concerned. She decidesthat she will clarify the assignment for herself and then proceed.

She begins by skimming the assigned materials and drawing her own conclusions about the points the readings make.She then reads the directions for the assignment, and while she is as uncertain as Dan and Cassie as to what to includein a "critical analysis," she unhesitatingly starts and completes her response. She is not concerned that she has not readthe feedback on her most recent assignment. She is certain she has met the instructor’s expectations. Besides, shewants to look forward, not backward. She is committed to working her way through the course sessions as fast aspossible. Nia is a woman on a mission with a clear goal in mind: first the diploma, then a career in human resourcemanagement.

Woman works on her laptop at home.

Stockbyte/Thinkstock

Nia completes her assignment quickly andwithout hesitation, but that does not meanthat she fully understands the assignment orcompletes it correctly. What kind of learner isNia?

She completes the assignment in less than an hour, and moves on tochecking her social media sites. When she finishes her updates, shereturns to her class work, and, even though the instructor’s directionssuggest that students re-read their work and double check it for sufficientcontent, use of three references, clarity of thought, and punctuation andgrammar, Nia chooses to post her work without reviewing or revising it.After all, she knows what she wrote and knows it’s brilliant!

The assignment calls for her to do a critical analysis of one of the pointsraised in the readings and to support her analysis using three sources.Nia’s interpretation of this, however, is to state her opinion of the article,and she does just that. Never one to use her own words when someoneelse can say it better, Nia uses passages from the readings, but she doesnot credit or use quotation marks for them. Nia’s learning problem is notself-doubt. Her problem as a learner is her ill-placed confidence in herwork. She confuses confidence with competence.

Nia as a Learner
Nia does not suffer from a lack of self-confidence as a learner, but a lackof being intentional. Throughout her years in school and in her military service, Nia was an overachiever striving forrecognition and affirmation—which others did not offer because she had not earned it. When she doesn’t receive therecognition she feels she deserves, she blocks out the feedback of others and replaces it with her own message of "ajob well done."

As a result, Nia frustrates her teachers and alienates her co-workers. Why? Because she does not face herself as alearner. Nia chooses not to be self-reflective and not to learn from others’ feedback on her performance. She cloaksherself in self-assurance and denies what others have to offer her; this stops her from developing her abilities andskills.

Are You Nia?
Nia (S33, P32, TR22, C27)

· Is strong-willed.

· Operates as her own team.

· Lets her sense of self convince her that she:

· can submit work that is off-track from the actual assignment.

· can ignore feedback.

· will learn nothing from feedback.

· Accepts no feedback, mentoring, guidance, or help when it comes to learning; she:

· argues, rather than listens to, comments and suggestions.

· has little respect for others’ opinions.

· Does not engage in personal reflection.

Dan, Cassie, and Nia all lack an understanding of how to be mindful, intentional learners. Their study habits are riddledwith common issues, ranging from self-doubt, to fear of not doing things right, to overconfidence. Each uses someaspect of the general parameters for studying: having a workspace, setting a study time, and having the correctmaterials. Yet, they are not headed for success because they let other factors disrupt their study.

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4.3 The Importance of Self-Regulation andMetacognition

Dan, Cassie, and Nia have a number of things in common: they are adult learners, they have numerous outside interestsand responsibilities, and none has mastered a key component of successful learning—self-regulation. This is theability to consciously examine your own thoughts and behavior, to identify which of them is causing you to beunproductive, and to determine alternative thoughts and behaviors that will lead you to a successful learning outcome.

Self-regulation is steeped in self-discipline—a type of self-discipline that is not rigid but flexible, one that is open tofacing reality, aimed at problem solving, and prepared to redirect your energy toward achieving your goal. As Marzano(1992, p. 138) notes, self-regulation involves the discipline and focus to:

· Be aware of your own thinking.

· Plan and then monitor your use of time.

· Evaluate the effectiveness of your actions.

· Be open to feedback.

The critical component missing in Dan, Cassie, and Nia’s approaches to learning is self-regulation. Dan does notregulate his time, his focus, or his self-doubt; Cassie does not regulate her fear of being wrong or effectively act to clearup her confusion about the assignment; and Nia does not regulate her self-assurance and refusal to consider others’feedback or opinions of her work.

As a result, they allow their lack of self-awareness to stymie their success. Because they are armed only with thephysical resources of a place to study and the digital technology to do their work, Dan, Cassie, and Nia flounder. Eachhas a vague sense of how and where they should study, but each lacks any form of personal learning tools andpersonal learning strategies. None of their study effort is done with intention.

The pathway to becoming an intentional learner begins with noticing, understanding, and regulating your thoughts andbehavior before, during, and after a learning experience. This learning behavior is known as metacognition, which liesat the heart of intentional learning. It consists of the phases your mind goes through as you are seeking to learn. Asyou metacognate, you are moving the external happenings of the world to the internal operations of your mind. You aretaking in the world around you, making sense of it, and developing the means to respond appropriately.

In the context of intentional learning, metacognition is defined as the internal talk that goes on within your mind asyou are learning. While its traditional definition is "thinking about thinking," the pioneers of metacognitive studydescribed it more specifically as "learning to direct one’s own mental processes with the aid of words" (Vygotsky, 1986,p. 108). Your internal talk consists of the "chatter" of your Learning Patterns as they call to one another—expressingtheir feelings, concerns, or the actions they want to engage in (see Figure 4.1). Each of your Patterns plays animportant role in your learning; each has a different perspective; and each has a distinct voice.

Figure 4.1: Metacognition

The Patterns within your brain-mind interface can be forged, intensified, ortethered by the internal talk of your metacognition.

Illustration of the brain-mind interface. The five senses (sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell) are absorbed by the brain and then filtered through Sequence, Precision, Technical Reasoning, and Confluence—the Learning Patterns—before being worked into memory via the metacognitive internal chatter.

Source: © Let Me Learn, Inc.

Learning Patterns at Work

Metacognition is the internal talk of your Learning Patterns. You may not have had a wordfor this phenomenon before, but you are well aware that your Learning Patterns havevoices that express their feelings, frustrations, excitement, and concerns as you work youway through a given task. In the following video, identify how Learning Patterns affect theway in which you metacognate.

The communication among your Learning Patterns forms your metacognition. Rather than being a distraction, thechatter among your Patterns allows you to actively listen to how your Patterns are at work within your mind, pullingand tugging you in different directions. This awareness provides you with the insight necessary for "purposefuldecision-making about how to proceed with the task" (Baird, Fensham, Gunston, & White, 1991, p. 164). Self-regulationallows you to take charge of your Patterns and "talk back" to them, employing strategies that help you complete thetask you have been given.

Self-Regulating Your Patterns

Only when you listen to your internal metacognitive chatter can you begin to take charge and respondappropriately to it. You may often miss the voice of your metacognition because you are surrounded byother audible distractions: ringtones, people’s voices, digitized music. Or you may ignore the chatterbecause you have decided not to notice it. One reason you might opt to ignore your internal talk is becauseyou are not prepared to listen to its message.

Your metacognition consists of a quartet of voices: Sequence, Precision, Technical Reasoning, andConfluence. It challenges you to make sense of their message and to hear more than the harmony anddisharmony within your thinking; it forces you to listen and make defining decisions. That is not easy to dowhen your Patterns are arguing about how to proceed or how to achieve. Listening to your metacognitiontakes practice, patience, and skill.

In other words, the self-regulation of your mind takes work. In order to make your metacognition work foryou, you need to understand the phases of thought and action that comprise it. You need to look at eachphase as a benchmark that brings you one step closer to being a successful learner. By taking the time togo through the action phases of metacognition, you can open doors to understanding and answeringquestions, such as:

· What is this assignment all about?

· What am I supposed to be doing?

· Where will I find the information I need to complete this assignment?

· What is the purpose of doing this?

· Will the instructor accept a different type of response?

· Do I need to submit work that looks just like the example we were given?

4.4 The Action Phases of Metacognition

What follows is a list of the action phases that your mind goes through as it completes a learning task. The terms (seeFigure 4.2) are words chosen to represent what occurs in each phase.

These are not scientific terms, but instead learner-friendly descriptive words that allow a student to observe andunderstand what is going on in his or her mind. They were chosen to help students respond to the age-old question:"What are you thinking?" and the equally frustrating criticism frequently leveled at them: "You know I can’t read yourmind!"

Phase 1: Mull

Virtually all tasks begin with some form of mulling—meaning you get inside the assignment or the task and seek tounderstand, "What am I being asked to do? Have I ever done this before? What were the results? Do I want to repeatthose results or avoid them?" You don’t start to do anything until you have a sense of where you are going and howyou are going to do it. If the voices of your Patterns are crying out for clearer directions or a greater sense of purpose,then ask for what you need. Don’t let the frustration of not knowing how to start the task escalate from simmeringquestions to boiling anger. Mulling is healthy; boiling isn’t. To avoid reaching that level of frustration, clarify what isexpected of you by decoding the assignment.

Decoding is a learning strategy that helps you mull and connect metacognitively to the instructor’s expectations. Thegoal of decoding is twofold: 1) to identify and clarify the intent of the directions—that is, what the instructor expectsfrom you; and 2) to complete the task in the way your instructor expects it to be done.

A pivotal tool to assist in decoding is a word wall; it is a chart divided into four sectors, with each sector labeled for adifferent Learning Pattern (see Figure 4.3). By using the cue words from the word wall to indicate what Patterns arerequired to complete the task, you can decode assignments, objectives, or any course-related task.

Figure 4.3: Word Wall

Which decoding words do you think will help you decipher assignments the most?

Four differently colored cells filled with words that align with the four Learning Patterns: Sequence, Precision, Technical Reasoning, and Confluence.

Source: © Let Me Learn, Inc.

When you are just beginning to learn how to decode, use a generic word wall. As you become experienced at findingthe cue words in your assignments, add more of them to the word wall. As you take more specialized courses, buildyour own word wall by identifying the key terms associated with each subject and associating them with each of thefour Learning Patterns.

Decoding tasks accurately is the main point of mulling. The steps to decoding are the following:

1. First, read the directions for the task.

2. Next, circle the verbs, specific terms, and titles that are intended to direct you.

3. Then, using the word wall, find the words you circled within the assignment, noting the Learning Pattern that eachword falls under. Go back to the directions, and above each word, write the first letter of the Learning Pattern it isdirecting you to use. See Figure 4.4 for an example.

Figure 4.4: Decoding an Assignment: Critical Thinking

Decoding a task is an efficient way to discern what the task requires.

Example of a decoded assignment. At the top of the figure are the assignment directions, and below the assignment is a decoded version in which particular words are circled and assigned specific Learning Patterns.

Source: © Let Me Learn, Inc.

By breaking down the assignment into the Learning Patterns required, you have a much clearer understanding of whatis expected of you. At least three of the actions to be taken require the use of Precision. Only one requires Sequenceand one requires Technical Reasoning. This assignment calls for no Confluence. That means that the instructor is notasking for your outside-the-box ideas or unique perspective. The instructor wants an accurate description of criticalthinking (Precision) presented in a concise (Technical Reasoning) bulleted list (Sequence). Decoding the task clarifiedhow to proceed and meet the instructor’s expectations.

Now try your hand at decoding the task described in Figure 4.5. Which would you circle as the key action words andspecific terms and titles? Refer to the word wall to find each of your circled words, and determine the letter of theLearning Pattern that should go above the word(s). Remember: All terms and phrases fall under Precision even thoughthey may not be listed specifically under that category.

Figure 4.5: Decoding an Assignment: Transformational Learning Process

The more involved the requirements, the more important it is that you decode the assignment beforestarting.

Example of an assignment and how to decode it. At the top of the worksheet are the assignment directions and below the directions are a decoded version of it.

Source: © Let Me Learn, Inc.

What specific Learning Patterns are going to be required to complete this task? Can you identify when you will need tobe using one Pattern more than another? Knowing the Patterns that you will be called upon to use when completing aspecific task helps you feel more confident about what the instructor’s expectations are for the assignment, and whatyou are being asked to do to complete it.

Dan, Cassie, and Nia all need to learn how to decode their assignments; it will save them valuable time, improve theirlearning outcomes, and increase their grades. Remember Dan’s dilemma? Instead of generating ideas or organizing histhoughts, Dan became fixated on the belief that he had no idea what he was supposed to be doing. Cassie was faringeven worse: She sat in front of her computer rereading the directions for the assignment, trying to guess what theinstructor wanted her to do. Nia didn’t even realize that she needed to take the time to mull and decode theassignment, which required a critical analysis with support from three sources. She simply wrote a paper stating heropinion of the article.

All three used their study time inefficiently and ineffectively because they did not take the time to mull the assignmentand decode it. If they had, they would have saved valuable time and submitted work that matched the expectations ofthe instructor.

Phase 2: Connect

The second action phase of metacognition is the act of mindfully connecting to the assignment. If you have mulled anddecoded the assignment accurately, then you begin to make connections to the requirements of the task. Of coursethere are various types of assignments, but most involve critical reading and critical writing, and each requires that youinteract with text.

Connecting to Your Reading

Using the steps below to guide you, connect your ideas and experiences to the content of an assigned reading(s):

· As you’re reading, think of a similar assignment you’ve had in the past. In your mind, can you begin to comparewhat you are reading now to what you have read in the past?

· Jot down questions that cross your mind. Post your questions and read others’ responses to them.

· Search for relevancy in the assigned reading. "Deep read" the passage, rather than skimming it.

· Anticipate the conclusion of the assigned reading before you complete it. Are you surprised by the outcome?

Understand what you are reading:

· Look for a thread of logic or a progression of thought (e.g., Step 1, Step 2, Step 3).

· Pick out new terminology and look up words you didn’t know.

· Search for the central point; pull it together from different parts of the reading if it is not explicitly stated.

· Consider the reading from several different angles.

Connect to the points in what you are reading by asking yourself:

· Do you feel you were "of like mind" with the author?

· Do the facts speak to you?

· Can you relate your own experiences to its message?

· Do you see any parts of the reading as a jumping off point for your own thinking?

Regardless of the type of assignment, intentional learners use their Learning Patterns to connect to the task, first bymulling and decoding, and next by connecting to it.

Neither Dan, nor Cassie, nor Nia invest in connecting to their assignments. Each allows personal issues, including self-doubt, fear of failure, and lack of personal investment of time, to get in the way of completing the assignmentsuccessfully. None is likely to succeed on current or future assignments if each continues his or her current approach.Conversely, if they allow their Patterns to guide them in connecting fully with the task at hand, they are much morelikely to succeed (Johnston, 2005; Johnston, 2006).

FIT: Forge, Intensify, Tether

A second aspect of connecting to the assignment involves fitting yourself to the task. FIT is an acronym comprised ofthe first letter of the words Forge, Intensify, and Tether. FIT describes the type of self-regulation you need to use inorder to fit your Learning Patterns specifically to the task you are facing. Your goal should be to match the amount ofeach Learning Pattern required of you to the amount of that Pattern you use.

Take for example, the task decoded earlier (see Figure 4.4):

"Write in bulleted form a brief description of critical thinking."

When decoded, you recognize that the task requires you to use Precision (as noted by three different terms, write,define, and critical thinking) first and foremost. Suppose your Precision, at a score of 18, is borderline Avoid/Use asNeeded. In order for you to complete the task successfully, you will need to temporarily increase or forge yourPrecision to fit the task. Once you are conscious of the possible disconnect between the assignment and your LearningPatterns, you can do something about it. Even though you don’t enjoy operating at a high level of Precision, you areable to do so once you recognize what the task calls for and you find a strategy to help you increase your Precision tocomplete the task.

As noted in Figure 4.5, the assignment you decoded requires you to do the following:

Example of an assignment and how to decode it. At the top of the worksheet are the assignment directions and below the directions are a decoded version of it.

Of the 17 key words decoded in this assignment, 12 require the use of Precision. Two require Sequence, and threerequire Technical Reasoning. None requires the use of Confluence. Clearly the assignment requires a great deal ofPrecision and a moderate use of Sequence and Technical Reasoning. But what if your Learning Patterns don’t match theassignment? Do you give up? No, you take action and forge the Pattern until it fits the level of Precision required by theassignment.

Forge

The term forge is intended to be applied to those Patterns that fall between 07 and 17 on the LCI "degree of use"continuum. The purpose of forging a Pattern is to increase the use and performance of it. Forging requires you to workin a way that you would usually prefer not to. However, because you know the Pattern is necessary for the task, youseek to make proper and appropriate use of it. Impossible? No. Does it require your attention and intention?Absolutely! It also requires an increased use of mental energy.

The amount of mental energy needed to alter your natural level of performance in a Pattern is directly related to thedegree you are required to use it. For example, Dan avoids Confluence (14). He is not a risk-taker, and this assignmentis asking him to do something he has never done before. In addition, he almost avoids Precision (18). Therefore, whenhe is required to "write, describe, and explain" a specific term, his tendency to avoid Precision has him feeling stressedand filled with doubt about his writing ability. Consequently, he needs to use a significant amount of energy to intensify(energize) his Precision and forge (increase) his Confluence in order to free himself to take on the assignment andbelieve he can achieve.

Cassie, too, has a Pattern she avoids: Technical Reasoning (10). It is not easy for Cassie to problem-solve. By notknowing how to use her Technical Reasoning to ground her Precision (29) and make it work for her, she allows hermind to go round and round in circles, never certain of what to do or how to proceed. Her Technical Reasoning couldprove helpful to her in completing the assignment if she knew how to put forth the mental energy to forge its use. Forexample, she could use her Sequence to plan a step-by-step approach to forging her Technical Reasoning and solve theproblem she is facing.

Forging is a metacognitive skill that takes patience, practice, and determination. Forging a Pattern is a challenge. Thesame is not the case if you use a Pattern at the Use as Needed level. Then increasing the use of it requires only thatyou intensify it.

Intensify

The term intensify is intended to be used with the Patterns that you Use as Needed. Use as Needed Patterns scores fallfrom 18 to 24 on the LCI continuum. They are the "quiet" ones that stay in the background until called upon. If theyoperate closer to the Avoid edge of the Use as Needed continuum, then they remain almost dormant unless awakened.If they operate at close to the Use First edge of the Use as Needed continuum, then they are more actively and readilyavailable for use without a great deal of effort. Your Use as Needed Patterns provide a rich set of options for you. Theyprovide a counterweight to the extremes of your Use First and Avoid Patterns.

Dan, Cassie, and Nia provide you with good examples of how their Use as Needed Patterns can help balance the use oftheir other Patterns. Dan Uses Precision as Needed, while Nia Uses Technical Reasoning as Needed. Cassie has two Useas Needed Patterns, Sequence and Confluence. If they were aware of the potential power of their Use as NeededPatterns, their study sessions would be more productive. Dan could intensify his Precision and use the increasedenergy to address the degree of Precision the writing assignment is calling for, thus raising his confidence and loweringhis self-doubt. Cassie could awaken her Sequence and use it to feel more secure in following the assignment’sdirections. She could also use her Confluence to lessen her fear of doing the assignment incorrectly, and instead, freeup her Precision to be willing to take a little risk and trust that she is using the right words when she makes herpoints in her analysis.

Nia also has a Pattern that could help her regulate her study behaviors. In Nia’s case, it is her Use as Needed Pattern ofTechnical Reasoning. If she were to intensify it, she would be better prepared to complete her written responsebecause her Technical Reasoning would demand that she carefully craft it to meet the assignment’s specifications. Ofcourse, Nia also has three Patterns that she Uses First that drive her behaviors as a student in ways that are not alwaysproductive. In many cases, she needs to tether them.

Tether

The term tether is applied to those Patterns you Use First. These are the Patterns that fall into the 25 to 35 range onthe LCI scoring continuum. These Patterns drive your life and your learning.

Of course, the challenge of using a combination of Use First Patterns in concert with your Avoid and Use as NeededPatterns is to do so with intention. In the case of your Use First Patterns, you must stay alert for when thesedominating Patterns need to be tethered—that is, pulled back, held down, or restrained.

Tethering involves addressing those mental processes that leave you feeling self-assured and confident. Theysometimes must be restrained because Use First Patterns do not necessarily represent competence. Their confidence issometimes misplaced, particularly when they are not the dominant Patterns required for a task. Thus, tethering yourUse First Patterns helps you gain perspective and anchors you to the current reality of the assignment, and it preventsyou from getting stuck trying to do things the assignment doesn’t require or allow.

Dan, Cassie, and Nia all have Use First Patterns that warrant tethering because even Use First Patterns can mislead alearner. For example, Dan could benefit from tethering his Technical Reasoning (30), his tendency to use few words,which can inhibit his Use as Needed Precision (18). In the case of the assignment calling for an analysis with detailedsupport from three sources, he needs to intensify his Precision and tether his Technical Reasoning in order to write apaper of an acceptable length, with sufficient supporting details.

Cassie could benefit from tethering her Precision (29) because it makes demands for perfection on virtually everythingshe does. Her Sequence (20) never organizes well enough; her Confluence (22) never has good enough ideas; and herTechnical Reasoning (10) is virtually ignored because it doesn’t help her have the precise words to assist her whenwriting. When Cassie doesn’t tether her Precision, all of her other Patterns are stifled.

Nia’s three Use First Patterns are a force to be reckoned with. Collectively, her Sequence (33), Precision (32), andConfluence (27) have her believing she can tune out the rest of the world and listen only to what she perceives to bethe right structure (Sequence), the best answer (Precision), and the greatest idea (Confluence). Tethering for Nia isvital. Only then will she be able to connect to the world outside of herself. Left untethered, Nia is destined to continuedown an isolated pathway as a Strong-Willed learner unable to recognize how she allowed her Patterns to ambush hersuccess.

"FITing" your Patterns to a task takes energy. The task at hand must be carefully and accurately decoded. The amountof resources needed to accomplish the task needs to be carefully assessed. Consequently, it is vital that you giveyourself the space emotionally, mentally, and physically to FIT your Patterns to the task. Build in opportunities toregenerate your energy if you have been tethering or forging your Patterns for several hours at a time, because themental workout you will experience is every bit as tiring as an hour or two at the gym.

Know, however, that the effort is well worth it. Never underestimate the tremendous feeling of accomplishment thatawaits you when you have succeeded in completing a task to a degree that you have not achieved before. Always keepin mind that "Learning strategies are most effective when students can make informed choices about which strategiesto use in particular learning situations" (Lovett, 2008).

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Phase 3: Rehearse

A change in study behavior does not happen without practice. The metacognitive term is rehearse , a robust form ofpractice. Rehearse involves studying the situation, preparing to meet expectations, running through the actual sequenceof completing the assigned task or test, and then repeating the actions for the purpose of improving your performanceor outcome. The rehearse phase allows your Patterns to go through a trial run to make certain that the performance ofthe task, the completion of the project, and/or the public presentation will meet the standards set by the instructor.Rehearsal prepares for expression by allowing any mistakes to be identified and corrected in advance of submitting thefinal product.

The centerpiece of the rehearsal phase is the personal learning tool called the strategy card. After decoding andstrategizing how to FIT your Patterns to the task, you can use your knowledge of your Patterns to develop personalstrategies to direct your efforts. The most efficient way to do this is to develop a personal strategy card (see Figure4.6).

Figure 4.6: Personal Strategy Card

Strategy cards convert general study skills into personalized strategies for learning based on each learner’sPatterns.

Figure of a personal strategy card. The Learning Patterns make up four columns; seven rows of questions and directions help learners decipher their own personal learning strategies.

Source: © Let Me Learn, Inc.

Personal strategy cards are essential to effective rehearsal because they help you address the requirements that youhave decoded from the assignment and they help you connect to the instructor’s expectations. Strategy cards help youorganize your approach to achieving success. They allow you to practice "smarter, not harder." You are more effectivewhen you develop a strategy card for each major task or assignment. In doing so, you become more disciplined andyou match your efforts to each requirement. Dan, Cassie, and Nia can each benefit from developing personal strategycards to guide their study and completion of work.

Dan begins his next assignment using some personal learning strategies and tools. See Figure 4.7 for the newassignment, which Dan has decoded. Then, using a strategy card, he matches his Patterns to the task, and developsstrategies that will help him see the path to being successful, and thereby motivate him to complete the task efficientlyand effectively.

Figure 4.7: Dan’s Decoding of a New Assignment

After decoding his assignment, what Patterns does Dan now know he needsto use?

Figure showing Dan’s writing on his assignment. He has circled and marked key words that will help him pick out what is required.

Source: © Let Me Learn, Inc.

Before he understood himself as a learner, Dan would have looked at the task and given up. Now that he knows how tometacognitively make his Patterns work for him, he invests himself in completing the task. Read through Dan’s strategycard (see Figure 4.8). What can you learn from Dan’s example?

Figure 4.8: Dan’s Strategy Card

After decoding his assignment, the personal strategy card helps him FIT his Patterns to the Patterns theassignment requires.

A personal strategy card with the four Learning Patterns across the top heading four columns, and questions and directions along seven rows. Inside the cells are Dan’s responses to the questions and directions he has tackled to decode his assignment.

Source: © Let Me Learn, Inc.

Now it’s your turn. Using the same assignment as Dan, complete a strategy card in Worksheet 4.2. Begin by filling inyour LCI scores and explaining the degree to which you use each of your Patterns. Remember, you can refer to thePersonal Learning Profile you developed in Chapter 2.

Next, look at the assignment again in Figure 4.7. How well does what you are being asked to do match with yourLearning Patterns? Where are your Patterns comfortable? Where do you experience a sense of discomfort? Once youhave identified the fit of your Patterns to the task, begin to fill in your strategy card.

Note that in order to FIT who you are as a learner to the assignment, you may need to use strategies in just one area,or in several. See how well your Patterns match or to what degree you will need to forge, intensify, and tether in each.Then complete the worksheet.

Worksheet 4.2: Your Personal Strategy Card

How will this personal strategy card help you with your next assignment?

A personal strategy card with empty cells for students to fill out. Across the top are the four Learning Patterns. Down the left-hand side are rows of questions and directions for students to answer in order to FIT their Patterns.

Source: © Let Me Learn, Inc.

Recording the strategies you use to achieve success in one assignment creates a resource bank that you can draw onthe next time you are confronted with a similar one. Having a set of effective strategies also raises your confidence anddecreases your self-doubt. Having personal learning strategies disciplines you to put forth intentional, focused effort.Developing a strategy card requires you to invest, not avoid, and dig deeper, rather than skim the surface of the task athand. Using a strategy card keeps you grounded in the requirements of each assignment and able to use your LearningPatterns skillfully.

Phase 4: Attend

In order to maintain the level of insight you gained about yourself as you rehearsed, you will need to attend to usingthe strategies that brought you to a new level of achievement. Often, students who begin to use personal strategy cardsthat help them understand, study, and complete learning tasks set them by the wayside once they have learned how tocomplete certain types of assignments successfully. They decide to operate on autopilot, based on the strategies theyhave used so far. In doing so, they jeopardize all the study ground they have just conquered. They can quickly findthemselves back to square one, especially when a new type of assignment rattles them. (Author’s note: As one whoavoids Sequence, I frequently create a strategy card to help meet book deadlines or to complete what for me aretedious tasks, such as writing a grant proposal that is based on a strict set of requirements that allow for no deviationfrom the format. It works on many levels, personally and professionally.)

The metacognitive phase that cautions you to attend to—that is, to pay attention to—a task also disciplines you to stayfocused and not waver from the high level of performance you have developed when using your personal strategies.Attending to a learning task is to be in an active state of focus, clearing away distractions, and concentrating on whatyou need to consciously do to complete the task well. To attend means you don’t let up; you’ll continue to operate at ahigh level of focused energy. The reason this is so important is that when you submit your work, or complete anassessment, or in any way perform the action that you have been rehearsing, you want it to occur at the same highlevel of performance that you achieved during the rehearsal phase.

How many times have you seen a playoff in which one team wins its division easily and must wait for its opponents tofinish out a close series? When they finally begin the playoffs, supposedly as the dominant team, the team’s play islackluster. Often, they can’t get back the mojo they had in the earlier round. The team that finishes first often loses itsability to attend at the same level as the rival team that experienced no downtime. The attend phase of metacognitionis when you need to be coaching, encouraging, and challenging your Learning Patterns to be on alert and to continuedoing the work of intentional learning.

Phase 5: Express

To express means to go public with what you have been rehearsing. It’s the real thing. To reach the metacognitivephase of express indicates that you have mulled, decoded, connected, FITed, rehearsed, developed personal strategies,and attended to maintaining a high level of performance. The paper being submitted is your best work. The projectbeing presented is your best work. The comments being posted represent your best effort. All of your effort has beenprocessed and refined. It is the result of not mere study habits, but the metacognitive behaviors of an intentionallearner determined to succeed.

Phase 6: Reflective Practice—Assess, Reflect, Revisit

The final phases of metacognition form the basis of something called reflective practice, which is actually a part ofcritical thinking. Reflective practice is also known as double-looped learning because it takes you back to examine thedefining questions you asked yourself as you entered into doing the assignment (your assumptions, actions, anddecisions) and the results you achieved at the conclusion (success, partial success, or failure). Reflective practice allowsyou to learn from your decisions and actions while determining their effectiveness. Don’t skip these vital stages, as theyhelp you gain confidence and avoid repeating any mistakes.

Assess

The metacognitive phases, when faithfully followed, always include a time to assess. Unlike external assessment ortesting, the assess phase of metacognition means confronting questions internally, such as "What have I reallyachieved?" and "To what degree have I achieved it?"

You need to ask yourself, "What is the outcome of my effort?" and let the feedback from your instructor lead you toconsider the results of your efforts. The metacognitive phase that follows links to this one—it too focuses on thequestion, "What is the outcome of my effort?"

Reflect

When you reflect, you begin your internal conversation with "As a result of my effort, I. . .." and you conclude with,"Next time, I will. . ." When you reflect, you ask, "Where does the buck stop? Who is responsible for this success? Thisfailure? This mess?"

This is the piece of professional and personal growth you may have been missing. After all, anyone can use the phrase"mistakes have been made" to anonymously attribute failure and blame. But only mindful individuals with a clear senseof their personal Learning Patterns face themselves (Osterman & Kottkamp, 2004) and say precisely, "I screwed up, andI am prepared to take the heat for it."

Nia, the Strong-Willed learner, avoids this phase of learning at all costs. Her unwillingness to reflect costs her. Usingyour metacognition well equips you to reach a powerful self-awareness and to be open to ask, "What did I allow myselfto do? What did I fail to do? Where did my Learning Patterns steer me off course?"

This is the autopsy of failure and of success. Without intentionally focusing on your actions, approaches, and thoughts,you are doomed to continue to achieve less than you could. You cannot continue to repeat the same actions, believingthat they will yield a different outcome. Reflection requires us to face ourselves—specifically how we have used ourmetacognitive talk and our self-correcting opportunities and how we have failed to do so. This is the key to being anintentional learner.

Revisit

The good news found in reflective practice is that it does not conclude with simply assigning blame or with rewardingsuccess. Reflective practice invites you instead to revisit your metacognitive phases, noting both those that enrichedand those that frustrated your venture. Revisiting metacognitive decisions serves to reinforce the specific strategiesthat led to success and to reconsider those that led to failure. Revisiting grows both metacognitive capacity andpersonal insight.

There is no doubt that when you understand your Learning Patterns and are aware of the internal talk of your Patternsas they work through the metacognitive phases, you are well equipped, as Peter Senge, the guru of professionaldevelopment, describes, "to consistently enhance your capacity to produce results that are truly important to you"(1999, p. 45).