Metalinguistic modelling: Applying research to practice in the ITT classroom

Laura-Jane Devanny, Senior Lecturer in Education, University of Northampton, UK In this reflection, I discuss Myhill et al.’s (2016) research paper ‘Writing conversations: Fostering metalinguistic discussion about writing’ and how I have utilised it to facilitate application of research to practice within initial teacher training (ITT). This research was employed within an ITT setting when encouraging trainee teachers to critically engage with research and use evidence to critique their practice, working towards one of the requirements for professional behaviours within the ITT Core Content Framework (DfE, 2019). The aim for the session was to consider prior learning and working memory as factors that impact learning and to recognise the importance of metacognition for learning, particularly given that writing can be viewed as ‘primarily a metacognitive process’ (Hacker, 2018, p. 220). The trainees then applied the knowledge gained from the research when developing their own