The Measurement of Young Pupils ́ Metacognitive Ability in Mathematics: the Case of Self-representation and Self-evaluation

Recent investigations have established the importance of metacognition in the acquisition and application of learning skills in diverse domains of inquiry (Alexander, Fabricius, Fleming, Zwahr & Brown, 2003). Although the concept “metacognition” has been defined in numerous ways Sperling, Howard and Staley (2004) suggest a focus on its component parts, which are knowledge about cognition and regulation of cognition (Boekaerts, 1997; Fernandez – Duque, Baird & Posner, 2000). Knowledge about cognition refers to the level of the learner’s understanding of his/her own memories, cognitive system, and the way he/she learns; regulation of cognition refers to how well the learner can regulate his/her own learning system, i.e., goal setting, choosing and applying strategies, and monitoring his/her actions. Though metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive regulation are interdependent variables, they are mutually interdependent so that more knowledge leads to better control and advanced control leads to construction of new metacognitive knowledge.