anding. Some have progressed to the consolidating level, applying and using information learned before. Some students are at the independent level of critical thinking and analysis. This highest level requires the highest and most complex thought and is the most advantageous to the student when using new knowledge in the real world.
One of the advantages of a metalearning classroom is that it is individualized. Even testing can be different for each student. Sometimes students may have done a similar task but evaluation takes a different form for each one because of different learning and personal styles. Of course, each student has to meet certain objectives for hospitality training, but the modality of expression or depth of understanding could vary. Individualized instruction has often been associated with special education, but it is appropriate in any field. All students deserve individualized learning.
Learning of this type, based on one-on-one conversation gives the instructor latitude in structuring tasks and assessment according to the student's style and particular needs. Such individualization is not time-consuming. It takes only a minute or two to assess learning with each student. This approach presents a much less stressful environment for learning than formal testing. After a conversation about a task, there often is no need for a paper and pencil test.
The theoretical foundation for metalearning and metacognition lies in the work of those researchers who studied how people learn. Myers and Briggs developed their Type Indicator, based on a Jungian model. Kolb classified learners into four different types. The Hermann Brain Dominance Instrument is based on right brain/left brain cerebral functions, which categorizes learners on a continuum ranging from sensing/intuitive to sequential/global (Dyrud 1997, 124). The important thing for hospitality instructors is to understand how they themselves lea...