A Comparative Study of Metacognitive Awareness of Reading Strategies among Monolingual and Bilingual Iranian EFL Learners

Abstract

Some researchers argue that linguistic knowledge of one’s native language facilitates the acquisition of additional languages (see, for example, Cenoz & Valencia, 1994; Grenfell & Harris, 2006; Hakuta, 1990; Keshavarz & Astaneh, 2004). To contribute to this line of research, the present study investigated the probability of significant differences among monolingual and bilingual EFL learners in their awareness and perceived use of metacognitive reading strategies and in the subscales of these strategies (i.e., global, supportive, and problem-solving strategies). To achieve this goal, 100 Persian monolingual and 100 Azeri Turkish-Persian bilingual male and female second-year university students, majoring in English Literature, ELT, and Translation with the age range of 20-28 participated in the study.  Both groups took the Nelson Test of English language proficiency and completed the Metacognitive Reading Strategies Inventory (MARSI) questionnaire. Participants’ reading strategy use was determined by asking them to rate their self-perceived reading ability in English on a 5-point Likert scale. The results of data analyses revealed significant differences between monolingual and bilingual learners in the use of overall and global metacognitive reading strategies with bilingual learners having greater awareness of these two strategies. However, no significant difference was found between monolingual and bilingual participants in the use of problem-solving and supportive metacognitive strategies.