ABSTRACTION/GENERALIZATION

“If you teach a person what to learn, you are preparing that person for the past. If
you teach a
person how to learn, you are preparing that person for the future.”
-Cyril Houle
What you just did while answering the questionnaire and analyzing your scores is an
exercise in metacognition. You stopped for a moment and thought about how you
study and learn.
You are reminded of your strengths and weaknesses, then you wrote what it is that
you can do to
improve your study habits. Hopefully, this will help you start to learn more
effectively.
The most important goal of education is to teach students how to learn on their own.
The
quotation above stresses this. It is vital that students acquire the skills of how to learn;
and that
these skills enable them to learn not just while they are in school but for a lifetime.
This entails a
deeper awareness of how one processes information, the ability to evaluate his own
thinking and
to think of ways to make his own learning process more effective. All these involve
metacognition.
What is metacognition? This appears to be such a high sounding word that some
people
are confused about even before they actually find time to find out what it really
means. It is not at
all that complicated. In fact, we do metacognitive activities so often in our daily lives.
When you
sense that you are experiencing some difficulty with a topic that you are studying, and
you try out
different strategies to learn better, you are practicing metacognition. The word may be
long, seems Course Code FLCT Page 30 of 87
intangible but it is worth focusing on because it can help you to be a more successful
learner. When
you become a teacher, it can also help your students to learn more efficiently and
effectively.
The term “metacognition” was coined by John Flavell. According to him,
metacognition
consists of both metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive experiences or
regulation. Simply
put, metacognition is “thinking about thinking” or “learning how to learn.” It refers to
higher order
thinking which involves active awareness and control over the cognitive processes
engaged in
learning. Metacognitive knowledge refers to acquired knowledge about cognitive
processes,
knowledge that can be used to control cognitive processes. Flavell further divides
metacognitive
knowledge into three (3) categories: (a) knowledge of person variables; (b) task
variables; and (c)
strategy variables.

PERSON VARIABLES
•Includes
how one views
himself
as a learner and
thinker.
Knoweledge
of
person variables refers to
knowledge
about
how
human beings learn and
processes
information
as
well
as
individual
knowledge of one's own
learning processes.
•example: you may be aware
that you study better in the
morning
TASK VARIABLES
•Includes knowledge about
the nature of the task as well
as the type of processing
demands that it will place
upon individual. it is about
knowing what exacty needs
to be accomplished, gauging
its difficulty and knowing
the kind of effort it will
demand from you.
•example: it might take more
time to read a book in
philosophy than a novel
STRATEGY VARIABLES
• Involves awareness of the
strategy you are using to
learn a topic and evaluating
whether this strategy
is
effective.
•Terms
like "meta-attention"
and
"metamemory"
are
related to strategy variables.
•Meta-attention
is
the
awareness
of
specific
strategies so that you can
keep your attention focused
on the topic.
•Metamemory
is
your
awareness
of
memory
strategies that best work for
you

These three (3) variables interact as you learn and apply metacognition. The following are
included in the practice of metacognition according to Omrod:
1. Knowing the limits of one’s own learning and memory capacities
2. Knowing what learning tasks one can realistically accomplish within a certain amount of
time
3. Knowing which learning strategies are effective and which are not
4. Planning an approach to a learning task that is likely to be successful
5. Using effective learning strategies to process and learn new material
6. Monitoring one’s own knowledge and comprehension
7. Using effective strategies for retrieval of previously stored information
8. Knowledge is said to be metacognitive if it is keenly used in a purposeful manner to ensure
that a goal is met. For example, a student may use knowledge in planning how to do
homework: “I know that I (person variable) have more difficulty with my science
assignments than language and I find sibika easier (task variable), so I will do my
homework in science first, then language then sibika (strategy variable). If one is only
aware of one’s cognitive strengths or weakness and the nature of the task but does not use
this to guide or oversee his own learning, then no metacognition has been applied.

Meanwhile, Huitt believes that metacognition includes the ability to ask and answer the
following types of questions:
a. What do I know about this subject, topic, issue?
b. Do I know what do I need to know?
c. Do I know where I can go to get some information, knowledge?
d. How much time will I need to learn this?
e. What are some strategies and tactics that I can use to learn this?
f. Did I understand what I just heard, read, or saw?
g. How will I know of I am learning at an appropriate rate?
h. How can I spot an error if I make one?
i. How should I revise my plan if it is not working to my expectations/satisfaction?