The purpose of this study was to examine which early childhood (EC) teachers’ qualifications (i.e., degree, major, and teaching experience) are linked to teachers’ Metacognitive Awareness (MA) and science teaching efficacy, and to investigate the relation among EC teachers’ MA components and science teaching efficacy. A total of 153 Head Start teachers from eight U.S. states completed validated surveys that measured their science teaching efficacy and MA. Results from multilevel ANOVA and regression analysis showed that teachers with an early childhood education background were more positive about their ability to teach science, more mindful of their teaching strategies, and more likely to self-evaluate their teaching as compared to teachers without an EC education background. Also, teachers who were more aware of their teaching strategies and instructional goals, and monitored their teaching practices reported higher confidence in their ability to teach science. Our results revealed the role of MA in early science teaching efficacy and highlighted the importance of supporting EC teachers’ professional development, particularly for those whose backgrounds are not in EC.

本研究的目的是检查哪些幼儿 （EC） 教师的资格 （即学位、专业和教学经验） 与教师的元认知意识 （MA） 和科学教学效能相关，并调查 EC 教师的 MA 组成部分与科学教学效能之间的关系。来自美国 8 个州的 153 名 Head Start 教师完成了经过验证的调查，这些调查衡量了他们的科学教学效果和 MA。多级方差分析和回归分析的结果表明，与没有幼儿教育背景的教师相比，具有幼儿教育背景的教师对自己的科学教学能力更加积极，更加关注自己的教学策略，并且更有可能自我评估自己的教学。此外，更了解自己的教学策略和教学目标并监控其教学实践的教师报告说，他们对教授科学的能力更有信心。我们的结果揭示了 MA 在早期科学教学效果中的作用，并强调了支持 EC 教师专业发展的重要性，特别是对于那些没有 EC 背景的人。