Metacognition – Definition of the Concept and its Application in the Context of Teaching

High demands for quality and effective education of individuals are automatic in today’s society, strongly influenced as it is by globalisation and characterised by an information “explosion”. The current approach to learning is therefore orientated not merely to “knowing what” but above all to “knowing how” and also “knowing when, where and why”. This is also why metacognition is considered one of the crucial dispositions in the field of the quality (effectiveness) of learning. The development of metacognitive processes falls into the field of the “new” (productive) culture of teaching and learning, the foundations of which are to be found in the theories of educational, psychological and (subject) didactic constructivism. In addition to the encouragment of metacognitive processes the “new” (productive) culture of teaching and learning stresses the individualisation of learning processes or introduction of authentic teaching exercises demanding the transfer of what has been learnt to new contexts (the pupils actively “construct” their learning). The development of metacognition in teaching is therefore a way to pursue a higher goal as well – metacognition as support for the “new” (productive) culture of teaching and learning can contribute to raising the quality of teaching.
The aim of this review study is to define the concept of metacognition and apply it in the context of teaching. The study is divided into two main parts. The first seeks to define the concept of metacognition, and presents its components and their categorisation. The second part offers a characterisation of teaching that encourages metacognition, and describes the development and evaluation of metacognition in teaching.