METACOGNITION

* Metacognition
* Learner – Centered
Psychological Principles.
WHAT IS METACOGNITION?

– “Thinking about thinking” or “learning how to learn”

– John Flavell (1979,1987)
– Refers to HOTS which active awareness and control over the cognitive processes
engaged in learning.
– Developed by allowing students in their own learning and thinking.
– Three metacognitive knowledge: personal variables, task variables, and
strategy variables
Personal Variables

– How one views himself as a learner and a thinker.

– Refers to a knowledge about how human beings learn and process information
as well as individual knowledge of one’s own learning processes.
Task Variables

– Knowledge about the nature of the task as well as the type of processing
demands that it will place upon the individual.
– It is about knowing what exactly needs to be accomplished, gauging its difficulty
and knowing the kind of effort it will demand from you.
Strategy Variables

– Involves the strategy you’re using to learn a topic and evaluating whether this
strategy is effective.
– Meta-attention – is the awareness of specific strategies so that you can keep your attention
focused on the topic or task at hand.
– Meta – memory – awareness of memory strategies that work best for you.
Omrod includes the following in
the practice of metacognition.
– Knowing the limits of one’s own learning and memory capacities.
– Knowing what learning tasks one can realistically accomplish within a certain
amount of time.
– Knowing which learning strategies are effective and which are not.
– Planning an approach to a learning task that is likely to be successful.
– Using effective learning strategies for retrieval of previously stored information.
– Knowledge is said to be metacognitive if it is keenly used in a purposeful
manner to ensure that the goal is met.
Huitt believes that metacognition includes
the ability to ask and answer the following
types of questions:
– What do I need to know about this subject, topic, issue?
– Do I need to know what I need to know?
– Do I know where I can go to get some information, knowledge?
– How much time will I need to learn this?
– What are some strategies ad tactics that I can use to learn this?
– Did I understand what I just heard, read or saw?
– How will I know if I am learning at an appropriate rate?
– How can I spot an error if I make one?
– How should I revise my plan if it is not working to my expectations/satisfactions?
Metacognitive Strategies to
Facilitate Learning
– Metacognition involves knowledge and skills which you and your students can
learn and master.
– Here are some examples of teaching strategies to develop metacognition:
1. Have students monitor their own learning and thinking.
2. Teach students study or learning strategies.
TQLR – this can be taught to younger students; metacognitive strategy
before listening to a story or presentation.
TQLR

T – tune in. It is important for the learner himself to be aware that he is paying
attention, and he is ready to learn.
Q – question. The learner is given questions or he thinks of questions about what
he will soon learn.
L – listen. The learner then intentionally exerts efforts to listen. He becomes aware
if he is momentarily detracted and goes back to listen again.
R – remember. The learner uses ways or strategies to remember what was learned.
Metacognitive Strategies to
Facilitate Learning
– Metacognition involves knowledge and skills which you and your students can
learn and master.
– Here are some examples of teaching strategies to develop metacognition:
1. Have students monitor their own learning and thinking.
2. Teach students study or learning strategies.
TQLR – this can be taught to younger students; metacognitive strategy
before listening to a story or presentation.
PQ4R – usually for older students; this strategy is used to study a unit or
chapter.
PQ4R

P – preview. Scan the whole chapter before delving on each paragraph. Check out the objectives.
Look for outlines of advance organizers that will give you an idea about the important topics and
ideas in the chapter.
Q – question. Read the guide questions provided, or think of your own questions about the topic.
R – read. Check out the sub headings ass you read. Pay attention on words that are printed on
bold or in italicized. Find out the meaning of words that are not familiar or clear to you. Use a
marker or coloured pencil to highlight important words or phrases.
R – recite. Work on answering the questions you had earlier.
R – review. Pinpoint the topics you may need to go back to and read in order to understand
better.
R – reflect. Think about what you’ve read. Is everything clear to you? What are the main points
you learned? How is this relevant or useful to you?
 Metacognitive Strategies to
Facilitate Learning
– Metacognition involves knowledge and skills which you and your students can learn and master.
– Here are some examples of teaching strategies to develop metacognition:
1. Have students monitor their own learning and thinking.
2. Teach students study or learning strategies.
TQLR – this can be taught to younger students; metacognitive strategy before listening to a
story or presentation.
PQ4R – usually for older students; this strategy is used to study a unit or chapter.
3. Have students make predictions about the information to be presented next based on what they
have read.
4.Have students relate ideas to existing knowledge structures.
5. Have the students develop questions; ask questions of themselves, about what’s going on around
them.
6. Help students to know when to ask for help.
7. Show students how to transfer knowledge, attitudes, values, skills to other situations or tasks.
 Novice and Expert Learners
ASPECT OF LEARNING
Knowledge in different subject areas.
Problem solving.
Learning/thinking strategies.
Selectivity in processing.
Production of output.
NOVICE LEARNERS EXPERT LEARNERS
Have limited knowledge in the different Have deeper knowledge in different
subject areas. subject areas because they look for
interrelationships in the things they
learn.
Satisfied at just scratching the surface; First try to understand the problem,
hurriedly gives a solution to the look for boundaries, and create a
problem. mental picture of the problem.
Employ rigid strategies that may not be Design new strategies that would be
appropriate to the task at hand. appropriate to the task at hand.
Attempt to process all information they Select important information to
receive. process; able to breakdown
information to manageable chunks.
Do not examine the quality of their Check their errors and redirect their
work, nor stop to make revisions. efforts to maintain quality output.