Metacognition
John Flavell (1979) called thinking about one's own thinking metacognition. It has two parts.
- Metacognitive knowledge: about oneself as a learner, the task and available strategies
- Metacognitive regulation: planning before, monitoring during and evaluating after learning
Strong metacognition lets learners locate gaps and switch strategies. Self-explanation, retrieval practice and learning journals help build it.
Intrinsic motivation
Deci and Ryan's self-determination theory holds that intrinsic motivation thrives when needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness are met. Extrinsic motivation can be internalised along a continuum from external to introjected, identified and integrated regulation.
The overjustification effect
In Lepper and colleagues' 1973 study, children who liked drawing drew less in free time after being promised a reward. Expected tangible rewards can undermine interest, although informational feedback about competence can strengthen it.
How they connect
Zimmerman's self-regulated learning cycle of forethought, performance and self-reflection joins the two: interest sustains monitoring and control, and successful strategies raise competence and motivation.
In the classroom
Offer choice (autonomy), set achievable challenges with process feedback (competence) and use cooperative work (relatedness). Exit notes asking what students learned and what still confuses them build metacognition.
References
- Flavell, J. H. (1979). Metacognition and cognitive monitoring: A new area of cognitive-developmental inquiry. American Psychologist, 34(10), 906-911.
- Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1985). Intrinsic Motivation and Self-Determination in Human Behavior. Plenum.
- Lepper, M. R., Greene, D., & Nisbett, R. E. (1973). Undermining children's intrinsic interest with extrinsic reward. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 28(1), 129-137.
- Zimmerman, B. J. (2002). Becoming a self-regulated learner: An overview. Theory Into Practice, 41(2), 64-70.