Metacognition is thinking about thinking. It involves metacognitive knowledge (what do you know and how do you know it?) as well as metacognitive regulation (how do you use what you know to approach different types of problems?).

In the stages of the learning process, you move from unconscious incompetence to unconscious competence; metacognition helps you advance through the 4 stages.

Learning objectives state what you should know or be able to do as the result of a course.

Interpreting learning objectives can help you understand the extent to which you are expected to learn and be able to use the material.

Successful intelligence involves a combination of analytical, creative, and practical thinking.

According to Kolb’s Learning Theory, learning is a cyclical process that includes 4 stages: Diverging, Assimilating, Converging, and Accommodating.

A learner can start at any stage in Kolb’s cycle, depending on their preferred learning style.

Bloom’s Taxonomy outlines six main learning-skill levels, arranged in the following order from simplest to most complex: Remembering, Understanding, Applying, Analyzing, Evaluating, Creating.

The higher levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy, sometimes including Applying and always including Analyzing, Evaluating, and Creating, denote college-level learning at the 400-level.

Multiple intelligences must be taken into account when considering Bloom’s Taxonomy and Kolb’s Learning Theory.

Emotional Intelligence and Creativity are harder to quantify but are often considered essential for higher-level thinking.

Creative thinking helps you look at problems from fresh, new perspectives. Everyone has creative thinking skills, even those who don’t think of themselves as “creative.”