Exploring Metacognitive Reading Strategies and their Effects on Academic Learning: Case Studies of ESL Students in Higher Education in the US.

Abstract

This qualitative study examined the use of metacognitive reading strategies of four doctoralESL Thai students who were at the time conducting research whilst studying in the US. The main purposeseeks to describe the ways in which these ESL students created meanings when they were reading foracademic or informative purposes. This investigation addressed two main research questions: (1) Howare ESL students in the US college able to manage their reading strategies effectively? and (2) What arethe students’ perceptions of the metacognitive strategies they have employed in the study of their coursematerials? To answer the research questions, the analysis ranged across the data collection methods,including the interview transcriptions, observations, and think-aloud protocols, providing informationin three areas: (a) the reading strategies of the participants before they came to the US; (b) the readingstrategies they employed and their refl ections on the reading tasks when they started their studies in theUS; and (c) their emergent metacognitive reading strategies.