Metacognitive strategy use of eighth-grade students with and without learning disabilities during mathematical...

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Educational Psychology
• Special Education

Background:

• Metacognition is crucial for academic success, particularly in complex tasks like mathematics.
• Students with learning disabilities (LD) often exhibit challenges in executive functions, including metacognitive skills.
• Understanding these differences is key to developing targeted interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the metacognitive abilities of students with LD during math problem-solving.
• To compare the cognitive and metacognitive processing of students with LD to their low- and average-achieving peers.
• To identify specific differences in verbalized thought processes related to math challenges.

Main Methods:

• Think-aloud protocols were used as students (n=73) solved three math problems of increasing difficulty.
• Protocols were systematically coded to quantify cognitive and metacognitive verbalizations.
• Analysis focused on the frequency of productive and nonproductive metacognitive strategies.

Main Results:

• Distinct patterns of metacognitive activity emerged across different ability groups.
• The type of metacognitive verbalization varied significantly based on ability level and problem difficulty.
• Students with LD demonstrated unique verbalization patterns compared to their peers.

Conclusions:

• Metacognitive differences exist between students with LD and their peers in math problem-solving.
• Instructional strategies should consider these specific metacognitive processing variations.
• Targeted support can enhance mathematical reasoning and problem-solving skills for students with LD.