METACOGNITION

Prof. Dr. dr. Suryani Asad, MSc., Sp.GK

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Definition of Metacognition:
knowing about knowing
knowledge and awareness of your own
cognitive processes, how they function, when
its likely to falter, etc.
I dont recall
I understood this fairly well
I wont be able to solve this problem
right
away
I cant study with the TV on
Her name is on the tip of my tongue
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STUDENT METACOGNITION
is a term used to describe a student's
ability to analyze his or her own
learning and progress. It usually
involves paying attention to what
you're thinking, and using strategies
to think more effectively. It is a key
strategy in improving critical and
creative thinking, reading, and
writing--all learning.
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Metacognitive Awareness and

Monitoring:
retrospective monitoring
judgments about what was
previously retrieved from memory
e.g. confidence judgments
prospective monitoring
predictive about information
available or
to be retrieved from memory
judgments about future responding
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3. Types of Prospective
Monitoring
Judgments:
1. Ease-of-learning (EOL) judgments
2. Judgments of learning (JOL)
3. Feeling-of-knowing (FOK)
judgments

1. Ease-of-learning (EOL) judgments

occur in advance of acquisition
predictions about what info and
strategies will be the easiest to
learn

2. Judgments of learning (JOL)

occur during or after acquisition
predictions about future test
performance on currently
recallable items

3. Feeling-of-knowing (FOK)
judgments

occur during or after acquisition

judgments about a currently
unrecallable item is known and/or will
be remembered on a later memory test
for incorrectly or non-recalled items,
FOK judgments are obtained by asking
how likely Ss are to be able to identify
the answer on a recognition test
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METACOGNITION consists of three

basic elements:
Developing a plan of action
Maintaining/monitoring the plan
Evaluating the plan

Before - When you are developing

the plan of action, ask yourself:
What in my prior knowledge will
help me with this particular task?
In what direction do I want my
thinking to take me?
What should I do first?
Why am I reading this selection?
How much time do I have to
complete the task?
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During - When you are

maintaining/monitoring the plan of
action, ask yourself:

How am I doing?
Am I on the right track?
How should I proceed?
What information is important to
remember?
Should I move in a different direction?
Should I adjust the pace depending on the
difficulty?
What do I need to do if I do not understand?
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After - When you are evaluating the

plan of action ask yourself:
How well did I do?
Did my particular course of thinking
produce more or less than I had
expected?
What could I have done differently?
How might I apply this line of thinking to
other problems?
Do I need to go back through the task to
fill in any "blanks" in my understanding?
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Definition
Knowledge about one's own
cognitive system; thinking about
one's own thinking; essential skill
for learning to learn
Includes thoughts about (1) what
we know or don't know and (2)
regulating how we go about
learning.
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"Metacognitive deficiencies are the

problem of the novice, regardless
of age. Ignorance is not necessarily
age related; rather it is more a
function of inexperience in a new
(and difficult) problem situation"
(A. L. Brown, 1980, p. 475)

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Metacognition includes the ability to

ask and answer the following types
of questions:
What do I know about this subject, topic, issue?
Do I know what do 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 and 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/satisfaction?

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Some examples of teacher

strategies:
Have students monitor their own learning and
thinking (Example: have student monitor a
peer's learning/thinking/behaving in dyad)
Have students learn study strategies
Have students make predictions about
information to be presented next based on what
they have read
Have students relate ideas to existing
knowledge structures (Important to have
relevant knowledge structures well learned)
Have students develop questions; ask questions
of themselves, about what's going on around
them (Have you asked a good question today?)

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 Help students to know when to ask

for help (must be able to selfmonitor; require students to show
how they have attempted to deal
with the problem of their own)
Show students how to transfer
knowledge, attitudes, values, skills
to other situations or tasks
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Metacognition
Citation: Huitt, W. (1997).
Metacognition. Educational
Psychology Interactive. Valdosta, GA:
Valdosta State University. Retrieved
[date], from
http://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/col/
cogsys/metacogn.html.
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Thank you for your attention!

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