Thinking about thinking

Adolescents also develop the ability to consider how they think about things. They consider the thought process itself and how they arrive at decisions or the values they begin to develop. They develop and learn to use different cognitive strategies for problem solving in different situations and also begin to think about their own thought processes; how they learn, what works well for them and why and so on. This is known as metacognition, thinking about thinking.

Meta cognitive knowledge is looked at in 3 ways

  • person variables
  • task variables
  • strategy variables

As metacognition develops young people also think more about how things affect them and also how they may be perceived by others. It is natural at this time for adolescents to become very concerned with how they are perceived which may manifest in concentration upon their self-image and sensitivity to criticism.

Look at these 3 young people who are planning a trip to a festival to see how they consider their planning process differently.

Select the face of each character to find out what they are thinking about.

Task variable: Being able to understand what the issues are, in order to work out the optimal way of achieving what is required.
"I need to look at everyone’s exam timetables and job commitments to work out which days we are all free to go."

Person variable: Knowing one's own strengths in processing information.
"I need to see the map first to get an idea of the route. I have to see it visually first."

Strategy variable: Using prior knowledge and finding out options in order to flexibly plan a strategy.
"I need to work out how to save money. I wonder if there is a discount if more of us go. Are we better trying to drive or go by train with railcards? Maybe we could hitch a lift or just everyone make their own way there?"

3 teenage cartoon characters including 3 interactive links.