Chapter 7, page 125
Ɣ She knows many cognitive strategies and how to use them to achieve her goals and subgoals. Some of
the cognitive strategies she uses are noted in italics in the description of Gisela’s evening.
Ɣ She knows when it is appropriate to use particular strategies and when it isn’t. For example, she knows
that the best time to brainstorm ideas is at the beginning of the writing process.
Ɣ She knows how to adapt these strategies to the particular situation; for instance, she knows that 40
minutes is ample time to brainstorm for writing this paper, whereas another paper might require a longer
period of time.
Ɣ She makes judgments about whether it is cost effective to use particular strategies. Although she could
make further revisions to the paper, she decides that because the paper is already good, it is not worth
spending the time to make further revisions, so she decides just to proofread the paper before printing
out the final copy.
Ɣ She can effectively orchestrate the use of all these strategies, so that she uses the right strategies at the
right time.
This example illustrates several closely interrelated theoretical concepts that have become prominent
in recent years: cognitive strategies; metacognition; and self-regulated learning. We will examine each of
these central concepts in the following sections.
Cognitive strategies
In the example above, Gisela uses many different cognitive strategies. As this example illustrates, a
cognitive strategy is a mental process or procedure for achieving a cognitive goal. Cognitive strategies can
be stated as “If you have a goal X, carry out process Y.” Here are some examples of cognitive strategies:
--If your goal is to understand a paragraph, then try to summarize the paragraph to yourself.
--If your goal is to write a good essay, then spend time brainstorming and planning before you begin
writing actual prose.
--If your goal is to decide which viewpoint is correct, then consider arguments on all sides of the question.
General versus specific cognitive strategies. There are two categories of cognitive strategies –
general strategies and specific strategies (Alexander, Graham, & Harris, 1998; Pressley et al., 1989).
General strategies are useful across many situations in many different domains of knowledge. Setting
goals and evaluating whether we are achieving our goals is a useful strategy that can be used in almost any
situation and discipline, whether it is studying history, mathematics, architecture, or any other field. There
are other strategies, which are fairly general, but not universally so. In geometry and physics, drawing a
diagram is often a useful strategy for illustrating and understanding concepts; this strategy can also be used
in other fields, such as drawing a timeline when studying for a history test. But drawing diagrams is not
applicable to all situations; for example, while geometry usually requires diagrams, algebra often does not.
Other strategies are highly specific to a narrow range of situations. The strategy used to balance chemical
equations, for instance, is useful only for this one type of problem. Effective learning and thinking requires
students to use specific strategies and general strategies in combination (Alexander, Kulikowich, & Jetton,
1994; Alexander, Kulikowich, & Schulze, 1994; Chinn & Brewer, 2001; Many et al., 1996). For example,
proficient mathematics students know how to use a series of strategy for solving math problems, such as
drawing a diagram, outlining a series of subgoals to achieve the overall goal, carrying out the solution
steps, and checking whether the answer makes sense.
Believing in the value of using strategies. In Chapter 6, you learned about how students’ prior
beliefs can affect learning. This is true of strategies, as well; students’ beliefs about whether strategies are
useful affect their willingness to use the strategies they learn. A number of studies have provided evidence
that some students who know how to use strategies such as summarization and elaboration refrain from
doing so because they do not believe that the strategies are useful (e.g., Chinn, 2006; Dole, Brown, &
Trathen, 1996; Garner, 1990). For instance, a student who knows how to elaborate material may not
believe that elaboration will help her understand texts better, and so she chooses not to use the strategy