Assessing Metacognitive Knowledge through Gender Lens

Abstract

The present study was conducted to assess students' awareness of metacognitive knowledge, commonly referred to as knowledge of one's own mind, and to further relate it to gender. The University of Peshawar's BS education program was the sole focus of the study (2014-15). Population of the study included 102 male and 127 female B.Ed (Hons) students. 102 male and 127 female B.Ed (Hons) students made up the study's population. A 90-student multistage stratified random sample was chosen. The data was gathered using Schraw & Dennison 1994 ¹ designed questionnaire items; these were then tabulated, converted to percentages, and further explained in simple language. Descriptive statistics and t-tests, among other statistical tools, have also been used.

Our result identifies pupils with best declarative knowledge while development of conditional and procedural knowledge is not fast. The study concluded that female students were good in knowledge of own intellectual strengths, self-ability to organize information, teacher expectations, fruitful learning in case of interest in topic, Self-motivation during learning and were more capable of purpose oriented study and uses strategies for understanding. Students are aware of selection of strategies, use of strategies and reuse of strategies. The study found that mostly pupil are aware of strategies for memorizing information, not for understanding new information.