Metacognitive monitoring and control in elementary school children: Their interrelations and their role for test performance

Contemporary models of self-regulated learning emphasize the role of distal motivational factors for student's achievement, on the one side, and the proximal role of metacognitive monitoring and control for learning and test outcomes, on the other side. In the present study, two larger samples of elementary school children (9- and 11-year-olds) were included and their mastery-oriented motivation, metacognitive monitoring and control skills were integrated into structural equation models testing and comparing the relative impact of these different constituents for self-regulated learning. For one, results indicate that the factorial structure of monitoring, control and mastery motivation was invariant across the two age groups. Of specific interest was the finding that there were age-dependent structural links between monitoring, control, and test performance (closer links in the older compared to the younger children), with high confidence yielding a direct and positive effect on test performance and a direct and negative effect on adequate control behavior in the achievement test. Mastery-oriented motivation was not found to be substantially associated with monitoring (confidence), control (detection and correction of errors), or test performance underlining the importance of proximal, metacognitive factors for test performance in elementary school children.

Children's deliberate memory development: The contribution of strategies and metacognitive processes

This chapter focus is laid on the development of memory skills when children are confronted with a task or a situation in which learning or remembering certain target information is crucial. It presents important milestones toward self-regulated learning skills. The chapter discusses precursors of later strategic behaviors and metacognitive skills, the distinct research methods suitable to assessing early indicators of deliberate memory skills, as well as their importance for the emerging memory skills. It outlines the challenges arising from the application of deliberate memory skills in naturalistic, complex task contexts. The chapter adopted an explicit developmental perspective of memory strategies and metacognition in deliberate memory situations.

Learning to drive: learners' self-reported cognitive failure level predicts driving instructor's observation rating of driving performance

OBJECTIVES Evidence increases that cognitive failure may be used to screen for drivers at risk. Until now, most studies have relied on driving learners. This exploratory pilot study examines self-report of cognitive failure in driving beginners and error during real driving as observed by driving instructors. METHODS Forty-two driving learners of 14 driving instructors filled out a work-related cognitive failure questionnaire. Driving instructors observed driving errors during the next driving lesson. In multiple linear regression analysis, driving errors were regressed on cognitive failure with the number of driving lessons as an estimator of driving experience controlled. RESULTS Higher cognitive failure predicted more driving errors (p < .01) when age, gender and driving experience were controlled in analysis. CONCLUSIONS Cognitive failure was significantly associated with observed driving errors. Systematic research on cognitive failure in driving beginners is recommended.