The recent
Spelman College First in the World Conference was an opportunity to share with the broader academic community the outcomes of Spelman's 2015 designation as a First in the World Grant recipient. Since then, FITW has helped faculty assess the impact of metacognitive instruction on students' academic performance. The College was one of 17 institutions to receive the coveted grant from the U.S. Department of Education.
The grant program was designed to promote innovation in post-secondary education with an emphasis on examining student learning strategies. As part of Spelman's project, led by Francesina Jackson, Ph.D., principal investigator, and
Jimmeka Guillory Wright, Ph.D., co-principal investigator and associate professor of psychology, metacognitive instruction was integrated into the
African Diaspora and the World curriculum. "This project provides empirical support for using metacognitive strategies, especially with college-level students," said Dr. Jackson.
"The conference allowed us to communicate the impact of metacognitive instruction and gave Spelman researchers an opportunity to share lessons learned over the course of the study with other institutions." Researchers have implemented most of the planned activities related to the project, added Dr. Jackson. The remaining activities include surveying previous student participants.