Appreciative Advising and Metacognition

by Karen Ehlers

Last month, I attended the NACADA 2009 South Central Region 7 Conference. I was thrilled because it gave me the chance to explore and experience the wonderful city of New Orleans. And I truly loved the region’s theme, “Louisiana Lagniappe: Offering a Little Something Extra to Spice Up Your Advising Menu.” The sessions I attended definitely lived up to this notion. My favorite was delivered by the conference’s keynote speaker, Dr. Saundra Yancy McGuire, Director of the Center for Academic Success and Adjunct Professor of Chemistry at Louisiana State University.

Dr. McGuire has developed an advising strategy which combines Bloom’s theoretical model of appreciative advising (2008) with metacognition theory by Flavell (1979). Bloom’s appreciative advising model features six phases: 1) Disarm, or diffuse students’ defensiveness; 2) discover by delving into students’ strengths; 3) dream by helping students’ imagine possibilities for themselves; 4) design by assisting students with the creation of a plan, 5) deliver by helping students develop strategies for carrying out their plans, and 6) don’t settle, or in other words, encourage students to aim for 100% mastery.

Dr. McGuire likes this model, but felt it came up short in phases 4-6 so she added another phase called metacognition, which focuses on academics. Specifically, Dr. McGuire and the Center for Academic Success created the study cycle and the intense study session which students use in conjunction with the appreciative advising sessions in phases 4–6. The study cycle consists of three phases: 1) previewing chapters before class; 2) actively participating in class; and 3) reviewing and processing class notes. The intense study session, which lasts from 30-75 minutes, involves a 2-5 minute goal-setting session at the beginning, followed by 30-50 minutes of active study, including reading, making flash cards, creating diagrams or outlines, and working problems without looking at notes. The intense study session is concluded with a five minute break and then a five minute review. McGuire recommends that students complete this process 2-4 times per day.

Personally, I have not yet mastered Bloom’s appreciative advising model given the typical 30 minute or less-once a year interactions we UF advisors tend to have, but I have been successful in creating more meaningful relationships using at least the first four phases. I hope you find Dr. McGuire’s expansion of Bloom’s theory as exciting as I do. In an atmosphere where advising often takes on a form similar to speed dating, I am hopeful this combination will help me put into practice ALL 6 phases of appreciative advising so that I can create more meaningful relationships with students and, more importantly, help students become more empowered and self-directed.

Bloom, J. L., Huston, B. L., & He, Y. (2008). The Appreciative Advising Revolution. Champaign, IL: Stipes Publishing.

Flavell, J. H. (1979). Metacognition and cognitive monitoring: A new area of cognitive-developmental inquiry. American Psychologist, 34 (10), 906-911.

McGuire, Saundra Yancy. (2009, May). Appreciative Advising and Metacognition: An Unbeatable Combination for Student Success. Presentation given at the NACADA 2009 South Central Region 7 Conference, New Orleans, LA.