The role of metacognition in children’s estimations of their abilities and subsequent persistence
The role of metacognition in children’s estimations of their abilities and subsequent persistence
Abstract
Children in kindergarten, first grade, second grade, and third grade were given a memory task during which they were asked to try to memorize eighteen items. They were asked to predict how many items they could recall, were given up to five minutes to study, and were then tested on how many items they could actually recall. This was completed over five trials, and results showed that children in second and third grades had better recall ability and better estimations of their abilities than children in kindergarten and first grade. These children were also asked to complete a persistence task and were given an unsolvable puzzle with up to five minutes to complete it. As predicted, children in second and third grade spent less time persisting on the puzzle than those in kindergarten and first grade, which demonstrates that older children are more likely to recognize when they are not able to complete a given task. Introduction In the fast-paced world we live in today, immaturity is viewed by many as a deficiency. Children tend to be care-free, eager, and unaware of many things at their young ages; however, research in psychology indicates that cognitive shortcomings in young children are crucial for human development. Psychology studies have been done to better understand the development process of humans. Some psychologists have found evidence that suggests that the immature stage of human development is a very aspect of the evolved human mind (Ellis & Bjorklund, 2005). Humans experience the longest period of their lives in childhood than any other species proportionally, and primates spend similarly long periods of their lives as juveniles (Kornell, 2009). In a world where children want to grow up as quickly as possible and immaturity is portrayed as weakness, psychology research on childhood suggests that the extended juvenile period of humans
Abstract
Children in kindergarten, first grade, second grade, and third grade were given a memory task during which they were asked to try to memorize eighteen items. They were asked to predict how many items they could recall, were given up to five minutes to study, and were then tested on how many items they could actually recall. This was completed over five trials, and results showed that children in second and third grades had better recall ability and better estimations of their abilities than children in kindergarten and first grade. These children were also asked to complete a persistence task and were given an unsolvable puzzle with up to five minutes to complete it. As predicted, children in second and third grade spent less time persisting on the puzzle than those in kindergarten and first grade, which demonstrates that older children are more likely to recognize when they are not able to complete a given task. Introduction In the fast-paced world we live in today, immaturity is viewed by many as a deficiency. Children tend to be care-free, eager, and unaware of many things at their young ages; however, research in psychology indicates that cognitive shortcomings in young children are crucial for human development. Psychology studies have been done to better understand the development process of humans. Some psychologists have found evidence that suggests that the immature stage of human development is a very aspect of the evolved human mind (Ellis & Bjorklund, 2005). Humans experience the longest period of their lives in childhood than any other species proportionally, and primates spend similarly long periods of their lives as juveniles (Kornell, 2009). In a world where children want to grow up as quickly as possible and immaturity is portrayed as weakness, psychology research on childhood suggests that the extended juvenile period of humans