Supporting Metacognitive Development in Science Education: Exploring Ontario Elementary Teachers' Beliefs and Practices in Metacognition

Metacognition is the understanding and control of cognitive processes. This mixed-methods study examined elementary teachers' beliefs about metacognition and integration in science through the following research questions: (1) How do elementary teachers conceptualize metacognition? (2) What is the relationship between elementary teachers' beliefs about metacognition and their classroom practices? (3) How do elementary teachers integrate metacognition into their science lessons? In-service teachers were recruited through professional networks to complete a questionnaire titled "Student Metacognition in Elementary Science," which contained openended questions and Likert-type items. Additionally, five respondents completed semistructured interviews informed by the questionnaire. The Likert-type items were analyzed through reliability analysis, independent t-tests, and multiple (hierarchical) regression. All participants were grouped into veteran (n=19) or early (n=22) teachers. Regression analysis demonstrated that participants' actions and beliefs varied based on their years of experience but not their gender. Years of experience was significantly correlated with teachers' actions. Generally, teachers understood metacognition and were able to identify reflective thinking as the foundation for metacognitive thinking. However, some gaps remain in their conceptual understandings. Participants emphasized the need for explicit instruction and ongoing opportunities to practise metacognitive skills. Most participants believed that metacognition was appropriate for elementary students because the students had the cognitive capacity to think metacognitively. A lack of consensus around the domain specificity of metacognition remains; all interviewees believed that metacognition was not domain specific, compared to more than half of the questionnaire respondents who held the opposite opinion. Participants reported struggling when their students were not explicit about their thinking. Professional development should focus on sharing new ways of measuring students' metacognitive thinking and making students' thinking visible to help support teachers.