Mastery of a Newly Learned Task in Young Children: Age-Related Patterns and Metacognitive Contributions

This study examined young children's mastery behavior in a newly learned task and its relation to metacognition. Participants were 104 children aged 4 to 6 years. Metacognition was assessed during task performance, and mastery behavior was measured during a subsequent self-directed practice phase. Results showed that older children engaged in a greater variety of practice attempts and made more attempts at relatively easy task levels than younger children. In contrast, persistence, practice frequency at difficult levels, and help-seeking behaviors did not vary by age. Importantly, metacognition was associated with greater persistence, a wider variety of practice attempts, and more frequent practice across most task levels, but not at the most difficult level, even after controlling for age, language ability, and performance accuracy. These findings suggest that developmental changes in mastery behavior differ across its dimensions. Furthermore, metacognitive sensitivity may enable young children to recognize uncertainty and the need for further practice, thereby promoting more sustained and comprehensive engagement in mastery behavior to consolidate newly learned knowledge.