Metacognitive Knowledge

Metacognitive knowledge is what a person knows about cognition. It refers to their thoughts and beliefs about how thinking works.

Researcher Paul Pintrich (2002) argues that while metacognitive knowledge is important, the really crucial element is that what people believe is accurate.
Students often lack accurate knowledge of how learning works.
Although teaching your students about metacognition may sound complex, all it means it starting to talk to them about how learning and thinking work.

Even very young learners can be told about how rapidly forgetting progresses, or about the way that learning can be biased by our assumptions.
These conversations start to build metacognitive knowledge.

Older learners can develop a much more sophisticated level of metacognitive knowledge.
They may enjoy looking at some of the research evidence on the spacing effect in memory and can start to develop an awareness of good study habits.

Another area of metacognitive knowledge is a learner’s store of techniques that help to help scaffold the early stages of learning and overcome forgetting.
These include the use of mnemonics that will make new and difficult terms, formulae or character names easier to remember.

1Basic Concepts About Metacognition

1.1Thinking About Thinking

1.1.1Metacognition & Metamemory

2Practical Implications for Learners

2.1Practical Implications for Learners

2.1.1Planning & Learning Strategies

2.1.2Beliefs & Self-estimates

3Areas of Metacognition

3.1Areas of Metacognition

3.1.1Metacognitive Knowledge

3.1.2Metacognitive Monitoring

3.1.3Metacognitive Control

4Teacher Metacognition

4.1Teacher Metacognition

4.1.1Teacher Metacognition

Jump to other topics