Just like how kids trust their superhero action figures to guide their playtime adventures, young learners have a clever strategy of using certainty to guide their own learning journeys. When kids feel certain about something, they stick to their existing beliefs and don’t actively seek out new information. But when they feel uninformed, they become like little detectives, searching for clues and seeking help to learn more. Interestingly, this metacognitive strategy doesn’t require them to report or explain their thought processes — it’s all happening internally! Even nonverbal human infants and animals display similar behaviors when faced with uncertainty, using strategies like seeking help or searching for additional information. Certainty also plays a crucial role in directing children’s attention and active learning strategies. It acts as a common metric for them to compare and integrate conflicting beliefs they encounter from different people. This fascinating review of developmental evidence opens up a whole new world of understanding when it comes to how children learn with certainty! Join the adventure by diving into the underlying research!

Learners use certainty to guide learning. They maintain existing beliefs when certain, but seek further information when they feel uninformed. Here, we review developmental evidence that this metacognitive strategy does not require reportable processing. Uncertainty prompts nonverbal human infants and nonhuman animals to engage in strategies like seeking help, searching for additional information, or opting out. Certainty directs children’s attention and active learning strategies and provides a common metric for comparing and integrating conflicting beliefs across people.

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