Abstract:

The purpose of the present study was to explore the use of cognitive and meta-cognitive reading strategies in relation to the test performance among a randomly selected sample of Iranian university learners of English. The study was based on the assumption that differences in test-takers’ performance on achievement tests can be attributed to their cognitive and meta-cognitive characteristics. The study used an institutional reading comprehension test, a Cognitive/meta-cognitive reading strategy questionnaire, and retrospective interviews with selected participants to investigate the possible effects of cognition and meta-cognition on academic achievement test performance. First of all, the results showed that learners use meta-cognitive strategies more frequently than cognitive ones. The findings also indicated that the use of these strategies can account for at least some of the variation on language test performance across different achievement groups. Quantitative data analyses showed that the correlation between levels of success and use of meta-cognitive strategies was significant and that gender did not have a determining role in the use of cognitive or meta-cognitive strategies. Possible implications of the findings of the study for teachers’ teaching strategies, for testers’ testing strategies, and for learners’ meta-cognitive awareness of learning processes are discussed.

Keywords:

metacognition, reading, academic achievement.