ISRCTN ISRCTN41017069
DOI https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN41017069
Secondary identifying numbers N/A
Submission date
18/01/2016
Registration date
29/07/2016
Last edited
05/08/2019
Recruitment status
No longer recruiting
Overall study status
Completed
Condition category
Other
Prospectively registered
Protocol
Statistical analysis plan
Results
Individual participant data

Plain English summary of protocol

Background and study aims
The ReflectED approach aims to support primary school age pupils in ‘learning to learn’ by developing their metacognitive skills. Metacognition, or self-regulation, is often described as ‘learning to learn’ and focuses on encouraging learners to reflect on how they learn, and then to develop strategies to improve these learning processes and their motivation. Metacognition is widely believed to have a positive impact on children’s development and most studies suggest positive outcomes. Teachers at Rosendale primary school developed the ReflectED approach over a number of years before it was developed into a set of weekly lessons specifically for the schools involved in this study. The lessons, produced as a specially designed workbook, were adapted from the teachers’ own practice in Rosendale school, but developed into a training programme for the children in the study to become effective reflectors. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of the ReflectED approach on children’s progress and attitudes in maths and reading.

Who can participate?
Year 5 children aged 9-10 in primary schools in the UK

What does the study involve?
Classes are randomly allocated into two groups: intervention and control. Children in the control classes receive ‘business as usual’ teaching. Children in the intervention classes receive a weekly ReflectED lesson from trained teachers following a series of expertly designed lesson plans. These lessons both introduce the children to reflection via various different tasks and introduce them to the process. For example, in the first lesson children are encouraged to think about when they learned something new and then taught to juggle or do origami. Throughout this lesson they are talking about how the instruction helps them to learn, but also about learning in stages and practising. The process also includes the use of the software Evernote to record the children’s reflections into a tagged database. A number of lessons in the first term focus on both getting the children to understand how to reflect, but also to record this using the Evernote software. As the year progresses teachers encourage pupils to use Evernote to record their reflections on a regular basis, ideally several times a week, across different subjects. Children ‘tag’ their reflections – this enables them, and the teacher, to go back to reflections to inform future teaching and learning.

What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
Children in the intervention classes are encouraged to develop the skills of being able to actively engage in their own learning processes, being able to develop a better sense of how they are learning, what they learn well and what areas of the curriculum they find more challenging. Following the initial year-long study it is expected that the schools will take on the approach and develop it more widely in the school.

Where is the study run from?
Manchester Institute of Education (UK)

When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
January 2014 to July 2015

Who is funding the study?
Education Endowment Foundation (UK)

Who is the main contact?
Dr Gary Motteram

Study website

Contact information

Dr Gary Motteram
Public

Manchester Institute of Education
University of Manchester
Manchester
M13 9PL
United Kingdom

ORCiD logoORCID ID 0000-0003-4368-6711

Study information

Study designSchool-based randomised control trial
Primary study designInterventional
Secondary study designCluster randomised trial
Study setting(s)School
Study typeOther
Participant information sheet Not available in web format, please use the contact details below to request a patient information sheet
Scientific titlePrimary age children's experiences of metacognition using a two-arm randomised controlled trial to measure achievement on maths, reading and attitudes to learning
Study objectivesThe principal research question is:
What is the impact of the ReflectED approach on progress in maths, reading and attitudes?

Other questions connected to the process approach include:
1. What are the teachers understandings of metacognition?
2. What value do the schools see in the ReflectED approach?
3. What are the teachers’ attitudes towards the intervention?
4. What are the learners’ attitudes to the approach?
5. What do teachers and learners perceive the benefits to be?
6. Is the approach scalable?
7. What are the barriers to delivery?
Ethics approval(s)University of Manchester Research Ethics Committee, ref: 14225
Health condition(s) or problem(s) studiedN/A
InterventionThe trial involves 30 schools with a minimum of two-form entry. Typical class sizes in the schools are between 25-30. Classes are randomly allocated into two arms: intervention (ReflectED) and control (business as usual)

The intervention consists of a year-long trial of a training process (ReflectED) to enable children to learn better how to be aware of learning and how they can improve their learning. There are a total of 28 lessons in the materials. These lessons both introduce the children to reflection via various different tasks and introduce them to the process. For example, in the first lesson children are encouraged to think about when they learned something new and then taught to juggle or do origami. Throughout this lesson they are talking about how the instruction helps them to learn, but also about learning in stages and practising. The process also includes the use of the software Evernote to record the children’s reflections into a tagged database. A number of lessons in the first term focus on both getting the children to understand how to reflect, but also to record this using the Evernote software. As the year progresses teachers encourage pupils to use Evernote to record their reflections on a regular basis, ideally several times a week, across different subjects.
Intervention typeBehavioural
Primary outcome measure1. Reading attainment
2. Mathematics attainment
3. Reading attitudes
4. Mathematics attitude

All of the measures are based on a comparison between the children’s Key Stage 1 (KS1) scores at the end of Year 2 when children are either 7 or almost 7, and their scores on the Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring (CEM) InCAS test conducted at the end of the trial (after 12 months). InCAS measures for Reading, Maths, Reading attitudes and Mathematics attitudes and a similar measure from KS1 tests was used as a baseline.
Secondary outcome measuresGains in academic progress for children:
1. Eligible for free school meals
2. With English as an additional language
3. With Special Educational Needs
Overall study start date01/01/2014
Completion date31/07/2015

Eligibility

Participant type(s)Other
Age groupChild
Lower age limit9 Years
Upper age limit10 Years
SexBoth
Target number of participants1500
Total final enrolment1858
Key inclusion criteriaYear 5 children in primary schools in the UK, ages 9-10
Key exclusion criteriaN/A
Date of first enrolment01/01/2014
Date of final enrolment31/07/2014

Locations

Countries of recruitment

  • England
  • United Kingdom

Study participating centre

Manchester Institute of Education
M13 9PL
United Kingdom

Sponsor information

Education Endowment Foundation (UK)
Charity

9th Floor
Millbank Tower
21 – 24 Millbank
London
SW1P 4QP
United Kingdom

Website https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk
ROR logo "ROR" https://ror.org/03bhd6288

Funders

Funder type

Charity

Education Endowment Foundation (UK)

No information available

Results and Publications

Intention to publish date01/09/2016
Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to shareNo
IPD sharing plan summaryStored in repository
Publication and dissemination planTo be confirmed at a later date
IPD sharing plan

Study outputs

Output type Details Date created Date added Peer reviewed? Patient-facing?
Funder report results results 05/08/2019 No No

Editorial Notes

05/08/2019: The following changes have been made:
1. Publication reference added.
2. The final enrolment number has been added from the reference.