Preface

Metacognition is an individual's ability to manage their own learning process. That is, it can be stated as the ability of a person to plan, monitor, organize, and evaluate how they will learn. Metacognition also helps the individual determine learning goals, develop learning strategies, use resources effectively, and evaluate their progress in the learning process. In addition, this skill enables the person to be more effective and efficient in the learning process.

Understanding how cognitive processes affect people's thinking and how the learning process takes place is a very important issue today. The complex structure and functioning of the human brain is one of the main features that distinguishes us from other living things. At this point, the concepts of metacognition, cognition, and cognitive learning come to the fore.

This book aims to provide a comprehensive overview of metacognition, cognition, and cognitive learning. It examines topics such as how the human brain works, thinking and decision-making processes, problem-solving skills, and learning methods and is aimed at helping the reader understand cognitive processes more deeply.

In the first section of the book, the concept of metacognition in learning is discussed. In the first chapter, the concepts of cognition, metacognition, metacognitive strategy, and metacognitive skill are examined within a theoretical framework and the place of these concepts in education is discussed. Additionally, examples of metacognition are given and its importance is revealed.

In the second chapter, metacognitive strategies and their types are given definitions. In addition, the connection between 21st-century skills, metacognition, self-regulated learning, collaborative, creative thinking, and metacognition is revealed.

The third chapter introduces the idea of metacognition to any reader interested in learning more about it. The chapter opens with a broad explanation of the topic at hand. The ability to reflect on and analyze one's cognitive functioning is known as metacognition. Also, social metacognition and the self-concept, social metacognition and stereotypes, and social metacognition and attitude are all discussed.

In the fourth chapter, important aspects of teaching metacognition are explained. Learning that helps develop and use the student's metacognition promotes meaningful learning and provides better learning outcomes. It is emphasized that the PDCA namely preparing (P), doing (D), checking (C), and evaluating and following up (A)—metacognitive learning strategy was developed as an alternative to metacognitive learning.

The fifth assesses how effectively metacognitive knowledge contributes to various facets of personality development. Also, this chapter highlights the significance of using metacognitive knowledge for comprehensive learner development and emphasizes the vital role of teachers in imparting metacognitive skills, thereby guiding learners toward personal growth. The findings underscore the potential of metacognitive knowledge in molding individuals into well-rounded personalities, with significant implications for educational practices.

In the sixth chapter, research, findings, and discussion emerging from a theoretical exploration of imagination as cognition and metacognition are presented. The researcher took a pragmatic stance in addressing a problem encountered in education practice: that an articulated understanding of "imagination "is largely absent, and its likely relationship with metacognition is little articulated, despite these being essential components of learning. This chapter is largely concerned with the model of imagination and metacognition that emerged through this process.

In the second section of the book, cognition and human psychology are discussed.

In the seventh chapter, information is provided that personalization in education in response to individual needs not only facilitates students to learn better by using different strategies but also meets the teaching needs of teachers in designing various teaching platforms. Moreover, while this chapter emphasizes that personalized learning using computers and mobile devices is one of the latest trends that has a global impact and promises to offer new methods that improve and stimulate learning, the effects of using technologies without taking into account pedagogical theories and models are emphasized.

The eighth chapter explores the MetaFlex framework, a novel approach that combines metacognition and psychological flexibility to foster personal growth and enhance psychological well-being. The MetaFlex framework focuses on the integration of metacognitive strategies and techniques to enhance self-awareness, cognitive flexibility, and adaptive thinking.

In the ninth chapter, the impact of teacher workload on students' academic excellence and metacognition is investigated to find measures to inform appropriate teacher workload. While it has been previously revealed that excessive workload can cause stress and prevent teachers from completing the curriculum on time, this chapter shows how it affects students' metacognition and academic excellence, and recommendations are given.

In the third section of the book, metacognition, transformative learning, and ICT are discussed.

In Chapter 10, transformation and motivation through the application of awareness and metacognition are emphasized. This chapter describes metacognition, the value of metacognitive awareness, and how it can be used to improve student learning and academic performance. In addition, while the effects of metacognition on learning are focused on in this chapter, the importance of awareness and use of metacognition in education is also emphasized, as it enables students to think big.

Chapter 11 examines students' perspectives on transformational learning experiences. Inspired by Mezirow's ten-stage transformative learning theory, the theoretical framework for understanding and analyzing students' impressions of transformative learning activities is also introduced. This theory places a strong emphasis on the important teaching and learning opportunities that are linked to students' previous experiences, and the importance of critical thinking and revision that can result in a transformation in students' knowledge is also emphasized in this chapter.

Chapter 12 explores educators' and students' perceptions of transformative learning through technology in rural schools. Transformative learning theory and the Technology Readiness Index model form the basis of this chapter. This chapter also reveals why most educators and students are optimistic about the use of information and communication t (ICT) to support teaching and learning, as well as what challenges they face and what methods they prefer to manage the situation.

Chapter 13 examines how students' collaboration processes have different characteristics that serve as peer scaffolding to support their learning. This chapter emphasizes how students collaborate with their peers, allowing each student to express and speak their ideas, but also how they have the chance to develop the ideas of others by listening to and incorporating the collaborator's suggestions. Constructive feedback provided by peers and how they help refine and enhance each other's understanding and learning products are the highlights of this chapter.

Chapter 14 aims to explore the integration of information and communication technology (ICT) during teaching and learning encounters in a country. In this chapter, it is emphasized why schools should pay significant attention to ICT integration training, competence, and appropriate software and materials to enable a computerintegrated teaching and learning culture for their various needs.

In the fourth section of the book, metacognition in special education is discussed.

Chapter 15 discusses reading comprehension, prior knowledge, and vocabulary knowledge, specifically with individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing. Also, this chapter defines metacognition and other terms related to reading comprehension. Metacognitive strategies are critical for reading comprehension, and planning strategies, which are also defined as before reading strategies, are the most critical.

In the fifth section of the book, metacognition and cognition in science are discussed.

Chapter 16 explores how teachers apply case studies as a teaching method that encourages critical thinking in science learning. The study was informed by Vygotsky's social constructivism and Shulman's pedagogical content knowledge. Both theories align constructively with the study as they emphasize that knowledge is produced through active participation and that the subject should be guided using relevant pedagogy. This chapter also explains why teachers should collaborate with other science teachers and science cluster leaders to share knowledge.

Chapter 17 emphasizes how to communicate clearly in STEM fields, mastering discipline-specific vocabulary and writing style and citation norms, in addition to following general rules for quality writing. In addition, in this chapter, the role and application of metacognitive approaches in science and writing studies may differ, and different communication environments are discussed, in which metacognitive approaches taken from chemistry education and writing studies can be applied.

In Chapter 18, the role of teachers in chemistry metacognition, what metacognition and chemistry metacognition are, their importance in chemistry education, and how they can be taught or developed to science or chemistry students who find the subject challenging are discussed. The importance of using metacognition and chemistry metacognition skills, knowledge, and attitudes in modeling and scaffolding by science and chemistry teachers in order for students to observe and learn metacognition in practice is also emphasized in this chapter.

Finally, Chapter 19 aims to explore the use of the conceptual change approach to improve students' understanding of the quantitative aspects of chemical change. In this chapter, the reader is informed that the conceptual change framework is effective in changing students' misconceptions and facilitates greater conceptual understanding, and the study proposes a well-designed conceptual change teaching approach that leads to significantly better acquisition of scientific concepts.

This book aims to contribute to the understanding of cognitive processes and the development of learning skills. In addition to providing the reader with basic information about metacognition, cognition, and cognitive learning, it aims to provide a better understanding of the subject with practical applications and examples.

I hope this book will be a useful resource for you about cognitive processes and learning. I wish you a pleasant reading.

Kind regards,

**Dr. Murat Tezer** Professor, Primary Mathematics Education Department, Near East University, Nicosia, Northern Cyprus

Section 1
