ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the central sub-component of metacognition, in the form of multilingual awareness comprising metalinguistic and cross-linguistic awareness in multilingual learners. It is argued that multilinguals develop increased knowledge of languages and language learning through experience. The Dynamic Model of Multilingualism Theory (DMM) (Herdina and Jessner 2002), which applies Dynamic Systems and Complexity Theory (DSCT) to multilingualism, serves as a theoretical framework for several studies from the Austrian and the South Tyrolean context. These studies show that multilingual awareness has to be trained in multilingual pedagogical approaches, in order to foster multilingualism. Furthermore, learners' metacognition concerning self-assessment of their own proficiency levels in their languages is presented as another promising area which should be more focused on, both in teaching and research.
