•What effects did this thinking have on your group’s pro-
ductiveness and efficiency?
•What are some indicators and evidence of that
productiveness?
•From this reflection and analysis, what will you carry forth
to future group work?
Let’s now return to your small groups and respond to these
questions.After allowing students to interact with each other about these ques-
tions, the teacher invites discussion.
Teacher:Share with us what metacognitive strategies you employed.
Student 1: I found that I had to manage my impulsivity. I wanted
to talk a lot and was tempted to tell the group all of my ideas. But
I restrained myself. I listened to their ideas. I think by doing this
I learned a lot more and heard ideas that I would never have
thought of.
Student 2:Frankly, I was bored with the whole project. I thought
the right decision was obvious. I wanted to get on with it rather
than explore all those alternatives. However, I told myself that
not everybody thought the same way as I did or saw it in the same
way I did. I knew they’d come around if I just gave them time
and continued to “hang in” with them. The result was that every-
body agreed that the decision we chose was the best one. I think
if I had dominated, we wouldn’t have achieved a consensus.
Student 3:I thought our group was very creative in the alterna-
tives they generated. That’s because we listened to and built upon
each other’s ideas. I thought it was cool how one idea sparked
another and another; we started generating ideas and almost
couldn’t stop. Our problem was having to choose one alternative
from so many neat ideas.
Student 4: I found that I was easily distracted, and being the
recorder in the group was difficult. I was always tempted to jump
in to give my opinion, but that was not my role. It’s hard to stayIs Your Instruction Habit Forming? 89