Research about Metacognition in Science Education: A Case of Basic Education in Thailand

Metacognition has been regarded as a research variable more than four decades ago with its general definition of knowing about knowing. It is genuinely difficult to study about metacognition because it is an abstract process occurred in one's mind. A number of studies about metacognition have been conducted in an international context to derive more understanding about a metacognitive process and its benefits. There are some studies related to metacognition in the Thai context; so, it is a need to explore the current situation of metacognition research in Thailand. The metacognitive studies conducted during 2002-2016 have been intensively reviewed. The researchers found 22 research studies related to metacognition in Thailand; three, 10 and nine of them had been conducted in the primary, lower-secondary and upper-secondary levels, respectively. All metacognitive studies could be grouped into five categories: a) Impact of metacognition on other research variables (n = 9); b) Teaching strategies to enhance metacognition (n = 7); c) Developing measurement tool for metacognition (n = 3); d) Causal model of metacognition (n = 2); and e) Factors of metacognition (n = 1). Two dominant categories (16 of 22 or 72.73%) were the Impact of metacognition' (n = 9) and Teaching strategies enhancing metacognition' categories. Interestingly, there were five studies aimed to explore the impact of students' developed metacognition on problem-solving skill. The teaching strategies employed to enhance students' metacognition are diverse including 5E or 7E models, learning cycle, problem-based learning, open-ended problems, constructivist and Tri-Sik-Kha instruction.