DCIS is developing a culture of self-regulated learning among students of the Nord Anglia Education school.
MATTHEW TUCKLEY, Year 11 Progress Leader at Dover Court International School, shares how the school is guiding students in self-regulated learning. DCIS is part of Nord Anglia Education (NAE).
How children form motivation and habits for self-regulated learning
In an age of easy access to digital learning, the capability to learn anything is now at our teenagers’ fingertips. Today, we can find information on any topic within seconds with YouTube tutorials and even AI assistants.
For teenagers to realise the potential learning that can occur when they engage in this way, our role as adults is to establish the motivation and behaviours for young people to become self-regulated in their learning.
A culture of self-regulated learning at DCIS
In an article about learning, educational researcher Barry Zimmerman states that self-regulated learners are “metacognitively, motivationally and behaviourally active participants in their own learning”.
In my current role, I’ve developed a metacognitive framework to support DCIS students in preparing for their exams.
DCIS is a part of Nord Anglia Education (NAE), which last year began a research project with Boston College and 27 NAE schools globally on further integrating metacognitive strategies. We also partnered with Harvard’s Project Zero to create 18 Thinking Routines, which are now being used across all Nord Anglia Education schools.
Later this year, as part of my master’s research, I will be working with DCIS students on the other aspects of self-regulated learning, such as motivation and behaviour. Below are two concepts that I introduced to help develop a culture of this throughout the school.
#1 Having a growth mindset
American psychologist Carol Dweck defines a growth mindset as “a belief that an individual’s potential is not limited and can be developed across all areas”.
It’s important to avoid limiting language and harness the power of “yet”. For example, instead of saying, “I cannot do a handstand”, we should say, “I cannot do a handstand yet”.
Self-efficacy, which is the belief in one’s ability to achieve a goal, has been found as the strongest predictor of 50 variables for academic success in college students in a study by psychologists. However, it is challenging to build self-efficacy because it relies on personal belief. This makes agency and responsibility vital for growth.
#2 Forming consistent habits
The concept of habit formation in implementing systems for improvement is widely publicised in the book Atomic Habits. It highlights that good habits result in incremental progress, analogous to how compound interest works for long-term financial growth.
A key takeaway from this concept is to identify actions you can take on your worst day. Take for example, a DCIS student planning to complete past-paper questions. They might do a 20-minute walk while recording a voice note to verbally review their knowledge on a topic.
As stated by the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle: “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
Preparing DCIS students for modern work demands
By instilling these concepts as frameworks for motivation and behaviour, we enable DCIS students to acquire metacognitive skills. This helps them flourish in an information-centric world.
It will also help prepare them for demands of the modern workplace. The latter similarly expects continuous learning late into career development.
Dover Court International School is at 301 Dover Road.
6775 7664 | dovercourt.edu.sg
This article about self-regulated learning at DCIS, a Nord Anglia Education school, first appeared in the March 2025 edition of Expat Living. You can purchase the latest issue or also subscribe so you never miss a copy! Keen to read more? See how these DCIS students are making period health talk easier. Also, find out fun things to do in Singapore with kids and great indoor and outdoor playgrounds in Singapore.
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