awej 5 no.4 full issue 2014

AWEJ Volume.5 Number.3, 2014Metacognitive and Cognitive Strategy Use and PerformanceAssiriusable with a variety of task formats. Comprehension strategies, however, are likely to be theleast used among cognitive strategies at a beginner’s level. Accordingly, test takers at this leveltend to use compensatory strategies, like use of memory associations and retrieval of similarforms, to make up for any deficiencies in comprehension skills.The most important contribution of this study to the current research lies indemonstrating how metacognitive and cognitive strategy use relates to performance on differentformats of reading-testing tasks. Generally, the use of metacognitive and cognitive strategieswhen responding to multiple formats of reading tasks is positively correlated with testperformance. For example, planning strategies help the test taker manage his use ofcomprehension, memory, and retrieval abilities in response to constructed-response questions.Monitoring strategies aid performance on tasks that require judgment such as true/falsequestions. Evaluation strategies boost performance on selected-format tasks such as multiplechoicequestions. As regards cognitive strategies, memory strategies facilitate response toselected formats, including multiple-choice and fill-in vocabulary questions. And, retrievalstrategies are in demand with all task formats. Therefore, skillful use of metacognitive andcognitive strategies on reading tests involves matching these strategies with task formats.Implications for practice and researchThis research has important implications for practice in the fields of language learning andtesting. First, offering learners enough training in the use of metacognitive and cognitivestrategies on reading tasks is essential if they are to perform well on these tasks. In particular,recent research on efficacy of strategy instruction (e.g., Akkakoson & Setobol, 2009; Erskine,2010; Wichadee, 2011) has pointed out significant positive effects that instruction ofmetacognitive and cognitive strategies can have on performance on reading tasks. Besides, iflearners receive enough training in metacognitive strategy use on reading tasks, they are likely tobenefit from it in their use of cognitive strategies. Cognitive strategies are manifests of readingprocesses that may not be executed well in the absence of metacognitive strategies.Strategy instruction is especially encouraged with readers whose comprehension skillsare low compared to the majority at the same level of language learning. Alderson (2000) arguesthat poor readers can be trained in how to make use of metacognitive and cognitive strategies,which can boost their reading performance and test scores. For the most part, strategy instructionshould present learners with descriptions and exemplifications of what metacognitive andcognitive strategies are and how they are used. Moreover, Zhang and Seepho (2013) recommendthat learners be made aware of the range of potential strategies they can use on a given test,especially metacognitive strategies. Training in strategy use demands ample time andtremendous effort on the part of both teachers and learners (Wichadee, 2011). Therefore, strategyinstruction needs to be planned for well in advance and never abandoned, because its potentialoutcomes can serve both short- and long-term goals of developing reading skills.The findings of the current study have practical suggestions for teachers on how toimplement strategy instruction of metacognitive and cognitive strategies. First, teachers areadvised to introduce to their students the two notions of metacognitive and cognitive strategies ina simple, yet practical manner. Thus, the teacher may inform students that metacognitivestrategies mean a learner’s thinking about how to respond to a reading test, how to track andcheck his progress during the test-taking, and how to determine the quality of her responses tothe test questions. Then, the teacher brings about the link between how these thinking processesaffect a learner’s actual test-taking by regulating cognitive strategies or more specifically theArab World English JournalISSN: 2229-9327www.awej.org198