Metacognitive skills of Malaysian students in non-routine mathematical problem solving

• Main Authors: Abdullah, A. H., Rahman, S. N. S. A., Hamzah, M. H.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: BOLEMA Departamento de Matematica 2017
• Subjects: LB Theory and practice of education
• Online Access: http://eprints.utm.my/id/eprint/75452/1/AbdulHalimAbdullah_MetacognitiveSkillsofMalaysianStudentsinNon-routine.pdf; http://eprints.utm.my/id/eprint/75452/; https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85030773826&doi=10.1590%2f1980-4415v31n57a15&partnerID=40&md5=05942a79fc2611e94652b7ca60af74fa
• Institution: Universiti Teknologi Malaysia

Metacognitive skills play an important role in solving mathematical problems. However, there is a lack of empirical studies on the role of metacognitive skills in solving mathematical problems, particularly non-routine ones. Therefore, this study was undertaken to identify students' metacognitive skills and the impact of such skills on non-routine mathematical problem solving. By using a quantitative method, a total of 304 students in Johor Bahru district were involved in the study. A Self-Monitoring Questionnaire (SMQ) and a mathematical test were used in data collection. Data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics such as frequency, percentage, mean, the Mann-Whitney U test, and the Kruskal-Wallis H test. Results showed that the level of the students' performance in solving non-routine mathematical problems was very low. There was also a significant difference in the metacognitive skills among students with different performance levels in solving non-routine mathematical problems, and we concluded that these metacognitive skills should be emphasised in this process.