The study investigated the influence of metacognition on critical thinking skills. It is hypothesized in the study that critical thinking occurs when individuals use their underlying metacognitive skills and strategies that increase the probability of a desirable outcome. The Metacognitive Assessment Inventory (MAI) by Schraw and Dennison (Contemporary Educational Psychology 19:460-475, 1994), which measures regulation of cognition and knowledge of cognition, and the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal (WGCTA) with the factors inference, recognition of assumptions, deduction, interpretations, and evaluation of arguments were administered to 240 college students from different universities in the National Capital Region in the Philippines. The Structural Equations Modeling (SEM) was used to determine the effect of metacognition on critical thinking as latent variables. Two models were tested: (1) In the first model, metacognition is composed of two factors while (2) in the second model, metacognition has eight factors as they affect critical thinking. The results indicated that in both models, metacognition has a significant path to critical thinking, p<.05. The analysis also showed that for both metacognition and critical thinking, all underlying factors are significant. The second model had a better goodness of fit as compared with the first as shown by the RMSEA value and other fit indices.One of the aims of education is for students to think critically. In order to achieve this end, it is important to identify certain cognitive factors that can facilitate it. Critical thinking occurs when individuals use their cognitive skills or strategies that increase the probability of a desirable outcome (Black 2005;Halpern 1998;Kuhn and Dean 2004;Nickerson 1994;Schroyens 2005). Specifically, developing students' critical thinking skills is facilitated through metacognition. The relationship between metacognition and critical thinking was Metacognition Learning (2010) 5:137-156

The study tested two models on the interaction of teacher variables using Structural Equations Modeling (SEM). In the first model, the effect of teacher's personality characteristics and teaching efficacy on teacher's performance and effective teaching was tested. In the second model, the effects of learner-centered practices on teacher's performance, effective teaching, and teaching efficacy were included. 296 teachers from a community college were assessed by their students on their teaching performance using the Student Instructional Report (SIR), the Effective Teaching Inventory (ETI), and the Learner-centered Practices Questionnaire which were devised by the researchers. On the other hand, the teachers assessed themselves using Osgood's Personality Characteristics Scale and the Teacher Efficacy Inventory by Gibson and Dembo (1984). In the SEM analysis, the two models did not change on their measures of goodness of fit with a RMSEA of .045 indicating that both models have a rather good fit. It was found that the teachers practicing learner-centered approaches use their self-efficacy in order to be effective in teaching, but it was also found that being effective does not result in high teaching performance ratings. The use of learner-centered practices is seen as effective but does not warrant having high ratings based on student assessment. A teacher's general performance in teaching is influenced by various internal and external factors. These different teaching factors are measured and assessed in order to come up with indicators of successful teaching that would effectively regulate students' learning and serve as success indicators for a school. Various studies have proposed different criteria on how to assess teaching performance and they differ according to different schools' specific objectives. However, in explaining teaching performance, there are important common factors that need to be considered. Teacher performance is influenced by the teachers' personality characteristics (

The relations among school ability, self-efficacy, learning approach, and metacognition were examined in a path model. Questionnaires measuring these constructs were administered to 194 Filipino college students. Path analysis was used to determine the effects of school ability on self-efficacy and learning approaches, and in turn, the effects of self-efficacy and learning approach on metacognition. The path model tested showed adequate goodness of fit ( 2 /df=2.77, GFI=.98, AGFI=.92, RMSEA=.05). In previous studies, deep approach but not surface approach to learning facilitates performance as outcome variable. However, a different pattern emerged in the results of the present study. When school ability was used as a predictor, surface approach increased and deep approach decreased as outcomes. When they were used as predictors together with self-efficacy, both increased the use of metacognition. Surface approach among Asians is seen as a useful approach to learning that is facilitated by prior school ability, and results to awareness of one's learning. Further implications on surface and deep approach to learning are discussed.

Renewed calls for identifying other variables and validating previous models that

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