Children’s use of metacognition in solving everyday problems: An initial study from an Asian context

The aim of this study is to understand the relationship between metacognition and students’ everyday problem solving. Specifically, we were interested to find out whether regulation of cognition and knowledge of cognition are related to everyday problem solving and whether students who perform better in the decision-making problem will better differentiate the various components of metacognition. Two hundred and fifty-four fifth grade students completed a survey. We found evidence to suggest the existence of two major components of metacognition. Our results also suggest that at a higher level of decision-making, knowledge of cognition and regulation of cognition were differentiated in their use by participants.

[1]  M. Hennessey Probing the Dimensions of Metacognition: Implications for Conceptual Change Teaching-Learning. , 1999 .

[2]  Xiaodong Lin Reflective Adaptation of a Technology Artifact: A Case Study of Classroom Change , 2001 .

[3]  Daniel L. Schwartz,et al.  Toward Teachers' Adaptive Metacognition , 2005 .

[4]  Gregory Schraw,et al.  Issues in the measurement of metacognition , 2000 .

[5]  J. Flavell Speculations about the nature and development of metacognition , 1987 .

[6]  P. David Pearson Handbook of reading research. , 1990 .

[7]  M. Montague,et al.  The Effects of Cognitive and Metacognitive Strategy Instruction on the Mathematical Problem Solving of Middle School Students with Learning Disabilities , 1992, Journal of learning disabilities.

[8]  H. Perkinson,et al.  The Unschooled Mind: How Children Think and How Schools Should Teach , 1993 .

[9]  Gregory Schraw,et al.  Assessing metacognitive awareness , 1994 .

[10]  Karen Strohm Kitchner Cognition, Metacognition, and Epistemic Cognition , 1983 .

[11]  Jim Hewitt,et al.  New Applications for Multimedia Cases: Promoting Reflective Practice in Preservice Teacher Education , 2003 .

[12]  Bruce C. Howard,et al.  Metacognition and Self-Regulated Learning Constructs , 2004 .

[13]  L. Baker Metacognition, comprehension monitoring, and the adult reader , 1989 .

[14]  D. Jonassen Learning to Solve Problems: An Instructional Design Guide , 2009 .

[15]  P. Johnson-Laird,et al.  Psychology of Reasoning: Structure and Content , 1972 .

[16]  Robert J. Sternberg,et al.  The Theory of Successful Intelligence , 2000 .

[17]  Gregory Schraw,et al.  The Effect of Metacognitive Knowledge on Local and Global Monitoring , 1994 .

[18]  John A. Ross Improving Adolescent Decision—Making Skills , 1981 .

[19]  Ann L. Brown Learning, remembering, and understanding , 1982 .

[20]  P. Johnson-Laird Ninth Bartlett Memorial Lecture. Thinking as a Skill , 1982 .

[21]  David E. McIntosh,et al.  Value of a Scale Used to Measure Metacognitive Reading Awareness , 1991 .

[22]  C. Sansone,et al.  The role of problem definitions in understanding age and context effects on strategies for solving everyday problems. , 1998, Psychology and aging.

[23]  Annemarie S. Palincsar,et al.  Enhancing Instructional Time Through Attention to Metacognition , 1987, Journal of learning disabilities.

[24]  Howard T. Everson,et al.  Towards a Performance Based Measure of Metacognitive Knowledge Monitoring: Relationships with Self-Reports and Behavior Ratings. , 1999 .

[25]  L. Schauble,et al.  Beyond Modularity: A Developmental Perspective on Cognitive Science. , 1994 .

[26]  Namsoo Shin,et al.  Predictors of well-structured and ill-structured problem solving in an astronomy simulation , 2003 .

[27]  Bruce C. Howard,et al.  Measures of children's knowledge and regulation of cognition , 2002 .

[28]  Janet E. Davidson,et al.  Smart Problem Solving: How Metacognition Helps , 1998 .

[29]  R. Sternberg,et al.  Practical intelligence and tacit knowledge: Advancements in the measurement of developing expertise☆ , 2006 .

[30]  M. Carroll,et al.  Metacognitive training aids decision making , 2007 .

[31]  David H. Jonassen,et al.  Toward a design theory of problem solving , 2000 .

[32]  S. Tobias,et al.  The ability to estimate knowledge and performance in college: A metacognitive analysis , 1998 .

[33]  Gregory Schraw,et al.  A Further Test of the General Monitoring Skill Hypothesis. , 1998 .

[34]  S. Paris,et al.  Children's Metacognition About Reading: issues in Definition, Measurement, and Instruction , 1987 .

[35]  Douglas J. Hacker,et al.  Metacognition in educational theory and practice. , 1998 .

[36]  D. Stipek,et al.  Effects of Different Instructional Approaches on Young Children's Achievement and Motivation , 1995 .

[37]  D. Cross,et al.  Developmental and Instructional Analyses of Children's Metacognition and Reading Comprehension. , 1988 .

[38]  Jennifer Amsterlaw,et al.  Children's beliefs about everyday reasoning. , 2006, Child development.

[39]  David H. Jonassen Learning to Solve Complex Scientific Problems , 2007 .

[40]  H. Swanson Influence of Metacognitive Knowledge and Aptitude on Problem Solving. , 1990 .