A Study Of Metacognitive Strategies In EFL Reading Of Non-English Majors

Since Flavell (1976) advocated the concept of metacognition, an increasing number of studies have been conducted to investigate the relationship between metacognition and different language learning tasks. As reading is one of the most important means of acquiring knowledge, reading activities and strategies have always been the research focus of numerous studies at home and abroad. In light of the important role metacognition plays in language learning, recent trends within the domain have led to an emphasis on incorporating metacognition into EFL/ESL reading. Despite the proliferation of studies on reading in the English language, there are relatively few studies on English reading comprehension of Chinese learners. In China, research on metacognition and reading comprehension remains to a large extent less explored in reading research.The present study is therefore conducted to investigate the role of metacognitive strategies employed by Chinese EFL university students who are non-English majors within the context of academic reading tasks. In order to discover the relationship between metacognitive reading strategy (MRS) use and reading task performance, the present study attempts to address four questions: the type and frequency of MRS students apply, the differences of high and low proficiency readers in the selection and use of MRS, the influence of gender and academic major on students' MRS use, and the correlation between MRS and reading proficiency. Ninety-two junior students from the departments of physics and history of Shandong University participate in this research. The questionnaire of the Survey of Reading Strategies (SORS) by Mokhtari and Sheorey (2002) is administered to measure students' metacognitive awareness and perceived use of reading strategies. The participants' reading proficiency is measured by the score of reading comprehension part in CET 4. All the data are input into SPSS 13.0, by means of which descriptive and comparative statistical procedures and further correlational analysis have been carried out.Results of the study reveal that the participants are moderate users in the mean values of overall reading strategies. Of the three categories of SORS, there is an overwhelming preference for Problem Solving Strategies, followed by Global and Support Reading Strategies. Significant differences are found between high and low proficiency readers in the use of Global, Problem Solving, and Overall Reading Strategies. Female students use Support Strategies significantly more often than their male counterparts. Academic majors also exercise some effects on students' strategy use, but not so significant as other factors. According to the correlational analysis, the Overall Reading Strategies are significantly correlated with reading proficiency and Problem Solving Strategies have direct predictive power. Based on these findings, potential reasons and implications have been discussed. The importance of metacognitive reading strategies suggests that they should be integrated into EFL reading instruction in classrooms.