Metacognition, a term introduced by developmental psychologist John Flavell in the 1970s, refers to awareness and understanding of one's own thought processes, commonly summarized as thinking about thinking. It is generally divided into metacognitive knowledge, what a person understands about how their own cognition works, and metacognitive regulation, the active planning, monitoring and evaluating a person applies while performing a cognitive task such as reading or problem-solving. In education, metacognition is widely taught as a study strategy because learners who monitor their own comprehension, recognize when they have not understood something, and adjust their approach accordingly tend to learn more effectively than those who proceed without this self-awareness, and metacognitive strategy instruction is now a common component of literacy and study-skills curricula.
Facts
Core ClaimTerm introduced by developmental psychologist John Flavell (1979) for awareness and understanding of one's own thought processes, divided into metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive regulation. 2 Classification
Education Level FAQs
Are learners accurate judges of their own understanding?
No. Students often mistake a lack of effort for understanding.
Not always. The article on metacognition notes that not all metacognition is accurate. Studies have shown that students often mistake a lack of effort for understanding when they evaluate their own knowledge of a concept, and that greater confidence in having performed well is associated with less accurate judgment of that performance. For this reason, a learner's feeling of having understood is not a dependable substitute for checking understanding against the material.
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In Approach
Source Wikipedia: Metacognition
Sources
1. Metacognition (Wikipedia)
an awareness of one's thought processes and an understanding of the patterns behind themView the Source 2. Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationMetacognition, Definitions sectionQuote, Metacognition, Definitions section
This higher-level cognition was given the label metacognition by American developmental psychologist John H. Flavell (1979).
Wikipedia: Metacognition
Wikimedia FoundationIn Approach: Cognitivism, Lead paragraph, in-approach
Metacognition is an awareness of one's thought processes and an understanding of the patterns behind them.
In Group: Metacognition and Self-Regulated Learning Concepts, Lead
In simple terms it is "to think about one's own thinking".
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