INVESTIGATING THE EFFECT OF METACOGNITIVE INTERVENTIONS ON READING PROFICIENCY AMONG UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS

Abstract

The study investigates the effect of metacognitive instruction on reading proficiency in undergraduate education using a quasi-experimental pretest–posttest design. A sample of 100 final-year students in intact classes is assigned to an intervention condition involving explicit strategy instruction or to a control condition with regular instruction. Across eight weeks, the intervention targets planning before reading, monitoring during reading, and evaluating after reading through brief mini-lessons, guided practice with authentic academic texts, and structured reflection logs. Reading proficiency is assessed with parallel forms of a standardized comprehension test at baseline and posttest. Metacognitive strategy use is measured with a validated questionnaire at the same time points. Primary statistical analysis applies ANCOVA to compare posttest reading scores across conditions while adjusting for baseline proficiency. Secondary analyses employ mixed ANOVA to examine changes in strategy awareness and compute effect sizes for pre–post gains. Dosage is recorded as sessions attended and minutes of exposure, and fidelity is monitored through delivery checklists and periodic observations. The design supports replication and enables estimation of practical significance through adjusted means, confidence intervals, and standardized effects. Findings are intended to provide evidence on the value of metacognitive instruction for improving reading outcomes in higher education and to inform curriculum planning, teacher preparation, and learning support services. Ethical approval, informed consent, and confidentiality procedures are implemented. Analyses adopt α = .05 with assumptions checked for normality, homogeneity of regression slopes, and linearity. The context involves English-medium coursework, and selected texts align with disciplinary content to maximize ecological validity.