The Role of Explicit Metacognitive Strategy Intervention in the Promotion of Declarative, Procedural, and Conditional Knowledge of Reading Heuristics amongst Moroccan EFL University Students

Abstract

This quasi-experimental study investigates Moroccan English department university students’ overall mastery of the declarative, procedural, and conditional knowledge of the text-processing strategies that facilitate textual comprehension at both the pre- and post-intervention levels. For examining this postulate thoroughly, two EFL first-semester groups pursuing their studies in English Language and Literature were randomly opted for as the informants for this study. The experimental group (n=63) received explicit training related to the declarative, procedural, and conditional knowledge of reading strategies, whereas the control group (n=50) took their normal classes. The two groups were presented with two reading texts (narrative & expository) at both the outset and the end of the metacognitive strategy intervention. This was accompanied by a ‘retrospective questionnaire’ at each stage (pre-intervention & post-intervention). The results indicate that the experimental group exhibited more substantive enhancement in metacognitive strategy knowledge than the control group did. Thus, the recommendation that instruction in the declarative, procedural, and conditional knowledge of reading heuristics be integrated in the Reading Comprehension Course at the university level is to be imparted utmost value in the sphere of academia.