Metacognitive Skills of Students in a Mathematics Class with Supplemental Instruction and Online Homework

Abstract

Improving students’ performance in Calculus is a challenge for many colleges and universities. One way of improving students' performance as well as their metacognition and study skills is to provide opportunities for them to receive support outside of the lecture. A modified version of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) was used to reveal any significant differences in metacognition and study strategies between students in a class with supplemental instruction with peer tutors and a dynamic online homework software (WebAssign), and students in a traditional class without these additional supports. Surveys and interviews were utilized to provide anecdotal evidence on the influence of WebAssign and supplemental instruction sessions on study skills and metacognition and whether students preferred WebAssign to traditional homework. Overall, the study showed no significant difference between the two groups in seven out of eight sub-scales of metacognitive skills and study strategies. Students reported that the supplemental instruction sessions and the WebAssign software were beneficial to their success.