Investigating the correlation between the frequency of using metacognitive reading strategies and non-routine problem solving successes in fifth grade students

The aim of this study is to examine the correlation between the frequency of using metacognitive reading strategy use and non-routine problem-solving achievements in fifth grade students. The study was conducted by using the correlational survey model, one of quantitative research methods. The participants of the study consisted of 308 fifth grade students who were studying in public schools in Istanbul and Ankara in 2017-2018 school year and were selected with convenient sampling method. The data of the study were gathered using the form for the frequency of using metacognitive reading strategy by the students and the non-routine problem solving achievement Test. In the study, the form for the frequency of using metacognitive reading strategy was applied in order to determine metacognitive reading strategies of the studies and on the following day, the achievement test including non-routine problems was then applied to the students. Simple Linear Regression Analysis and Pearson Product-Moments Correlation Analysis were used in the analysis of the data obtained in the study. According to the results of the study, there was a positive correlation between the frequency of using metacognitive reading strategy and non-routine problem-solving achievements in fifth grade students and metacognitive reading strategies were a predictor of non-routine problem-solving achievement. © 2018 by authors. All rights reserved

Applying science of learning in education: Infusing psychological science into the curriculum

The field of specialization known as the science of learning is not, in fact, one field. Science of learning is a term that serves as an umbrella for many lines of research, theory, and application. A term with an even wider reach is Learning Sciences (Sawyer, 2006). The present book represents a sliver, albeit a substantial one, of the scholarship on the science of learning and its application in educational settings (Science of Instruction, Mayer 2011). Although much, but not all, of what is presented in this book is focused on learning in college and university settings, teachers of all academic levels may find the recommendations made by chapter authors of service. The overarching theme of this book is on the interplay between the science of learning, the science of instruction, and the science of assessment (Mayer, 2011). The science of learning is a systematic and empirical approach to understanding how people learn. More formally, Mayer (2011) defined the science of learning as the “scientific study of how people learn” (p. 3). The science of instruction (Mayer 2011), informed in part by the science of learning, is also on display throughout the book. Mayer defined the science of instruction as the “scientific study of how to help people learn” (p. 3). Finally, the assessment of student learning (e.g., learning, remembering, transferring knowledge) during and after instruction helps us determine the effectiveness of our instructional methods. Mayer defined the science of assessment as the “scientific study of how to determine what people know” (p.3). Most of the research and applications presented in this book are completed within a science of learning framework. Researchers first conducted research to understand how people learn in certain controlled contexts (i.e., in the laboratory) and then they, or others, began to consider how these understandings could be applied in educational settings. Work on the cognitive load theory of learning, which is discussed in depth in several chapters of this book (e.g., Chew; Lee and Kalyuga; Mayer; Renkl), provides an excellent example that documents how science of learning has led to valuable work on the science of instruction. Most of the work described in this book is based on theory and research in cognitive psychology. We might have selected other topics (and, thus, other authors) that have their research base in behavior analysis, computational modeling and computer science, neuroscience, etc. We made the selections we did because the work of our authors ties together nicely and seemed to us to have direct applicability in academic settings

A holistic model to infer mathematics performance: the interrelated impact of student, family and school context variables

The present study aims at exploring predictors influencing mathematics performance. In particular, the study focuses on internal students' characteristics (gender, age, metacognitive experience, mathematics self-efficacy) and external contextual factors (GDP of school location, parents' educational level, teachers' educational level, and teacher beliefs). A sample of 1749 students and 91 teachers from Chinese primary schools were involved in the study. Path analysis was used to test the direct and indirect relations between the predictors and mathematics performance. Results reveal that a large proportion of mathematics performance can be directly predicted from students' metacognitive experiences. In addition, other student characteristics and contextual variables influence mathematics performance in direct or indirect ways

Training working memory to reduce rumination

Cognitive symptoms of depression, such as rumination, have shown to be associated with deficits in working memory functioning. More precisely, the capacity to expel irrelevant negative information from working memory seems to be affected. Even though these associations have repeatedly been demonstrated, the nature and causal direction of this association is still unclear. Therefore, within an experimental design, we tried to manipulate working memory functioning of participants with heightened rumination scores in two similar experiments (n = 72 and n = 45) using a six day working memory training compared to active and passive control groups. Subsequently the effects on the processing of non-emotional and emotional information in working memory were monitored. In both experiments, performance during the training task significantly increased, but this performance gain did not transfer to the outcome working memory tasks or rumination and depression measures. Possible explanations for the failure to find transfer effects are discussed

The Effects of Metacognitive Training on Algebra Students’ Calibration Accuracy, Achievement, and Mathematical Literacy

This dissertation describes an empirical study that investigated how metacognitive training influenced lower achieving Algebra students’ calibration accuracy, achievement, and development of mathematics literacy. Multiple methods were used to collect and analyze the data. Close analysis of students’ work and classroom observations revealed that students that were exposed to the metacognitive training had significantly higher prediction accuracy and made gains in their understanding of the mathematics word problems than did students who did not receive the metacognitive training. Overall, however, both the intervention and comparison groups improved in their academic performance and became more mathematically literate and accurate in their metacognitive judgments. These findings suggested that explicit instruction of self-regulation strategies was beneficial for improving metacognitive judgments among lower achieving Algebra students in this study. Results further suggest that the problem-solving strategy enhanced mathematics learning for both groups. Further research is warranted to better understand students’ metacognitions as they engage in the problem-solving process

Off-line metacognition in children with mathematics learning disabilities

This thesis is devoted to the relationship between off-line metacognition and mathematical problem solving skills in lower-elementary-school children. The question underlying this thesis is whether or not off-line metacognition has some ‘value added’ in the assessment and treatment of young children with mathematics learning disabilities. Since Flavell (1976), metacognition has become a general multidimensional construct. Unfortunately, despite all the emphasis on metacognition, it became clear that currently researchers use different concepts for overlapping phenomena and employ different methods to assess these phenomena. The purpose of this thesis is to help to clarify some of the issues on the conceptualization of metacognition. Furthermore, it is investigated if some of the metacognitive parameters can be combined into a smaller number of supervariables. It is concluded that off-line metacognitive skillfulness (a combination of prediction and evaluation skills) explains about 16% of the variance in mathematical problem solving in young children. Two instruments to unravel off-line metacognitive skillfulness (EPA and EPA2000) are presented. Several studies with EPA2000 (De Clercq, Desoete & Roeyers, 2000) appeared to underline the importance of off-line metacognition to differentiate children with mathematics learning disabilities from children with age-adequate mathematics performances. However, not all children with mathematics learning disabilities showed a metacognitive deficiency. Our data underlined that there might be a sort of mathematics learning disabilities spectrum, with different (meta)cognitive profiles in young children. It might therefore be important to assess off-line metacognitive skills in children with mathematics learning disabilities. Another question underlying this thesis is whether an intervention on off-line metacognition has some value added on the treatment of children with mathematics learning disabilities in grade 3. The findings from our intervention study indicated that prediction is a modifiable skill. Moreover, we found positive treatment outcomes by adding an aspect of off-line metacognition on traditionally used mathematical problem solving treatments. In addition, the findings of this thesis indicate that motivating children or ordinary exposure to mathematical problem solving exercises is not enough to stimulate children’s metacognitive skills. Off-line metacognitive skills need to be explicitly taught in order to develop