What are Approaches to Learning skills and why are they important?
HIGH SCHOOL
Mr. David Miles - High School Principal
At the heart of all the IB programme models, you will find mention of Approaches to Learning (ATL) skills. This highlights the belief that the development of these skills is essential on the journey towards being a life-long learner, and that they therefore need to be prioritised within the learning process.
At VIS, students before Grade 11 are not involved in IB programmes, but we want all of our students to be able to achieve success within the IB Diploma Programme years, and so incorporating these skills into learning experiences from Grade 9 onwards, and even in earlier grades, is key to long-term success.
The IB identifies a framework of 5 overarching ATL skills clusters: Thinking, Communication, Social, Self-management, and Research skills. Each of these plays an important role in helping students develop the independent learning skills they need to thrive in an inquiry-focused learning programme, but it can be argued that developing one’s thinking skills is of the highest priority.
Metacognition, or “thinking about thinking”, refers to higher-order thinking which involves active control over the cognitive processes engaged in learning, and metacognitive strategies are ranked highly amongst the list of factors related to student achievement (https://visible-learning.org/hattie-ranking-influences-effect-sizes-learning-achievement/). By thinking about thinking, students can learn to understand better what works for them and where their weaknesses lie, and then to monitor their own thinking and control their own cognitive processes. Thinking about thinking can help all students become better learners.
Vila Petrovic Gr 12 IBDP
Before the introduction of ATL learning skills in the verdala community, the understanding of “learning” between the teachers and students was incoherent. The students, in particular, did not understand how to effectively and efficiently learn. Personally, learning used to consist of memorizing content for a test, only to forget it immediately after.
Perhaps that was what made the introduction of thinking, communication, social, self-management, and research skills so meaningful and impactful to the way I learnt. These 5 ATL learning skills improved both my attitude towards learning, and the results I received on summative assessments. It also taught me to categorically separate learning into personal, shared, and academic.
My teachers have helped me consistently reflect on the content I was taught, allowing me to think more critically of the information I was receiving, and communicate any concerns, observations, and inquiries I had about it. These attributes, in turn, carried into my shared and personal life. I managed to build and strengthen relationships and network with others almost effortlessly, because of the values I was taught to have.
With the help of ATL learning skills, I strengthened myself as an individual. I strongly believe that as I transition from high school to university, the attitudes to learning I was taught to have will remain with me, helping me become a knowledgeable, inquisitive and ethical contributor to our world.
Grade 12 Student's Learning Approaches