THE ROLE OF METALINGUISTIC AWARENESS IN CHILDREN’S COGNITIVE AND SPEECH DEVELOPMENT

Abstract

Metalinguistic awareness is an important component of children’s cognitive and language development. It is the ability to recognize and analyze the structure of language, as well as to control one’s own speech. In recent decades, metalinguistic awareness has been considered a key factor contributing to successful literacy acquisition and language development. This article examines the main components of metalinguistic awareness, its functions in cognitive and language development, and its role in bilingual education.