Metathesis: Journal of English Language, Literature, and Teaching
Vol. 9 No. 2 (2025): Metathesis: Journal of English Language, Literature, and Teaching

Students’ Metacognitive Strategies in Writing Argumentative Essay

Nurjanah, Ratih Laily (Unknown)
Waluyo, Sri (Unknown)



Article Info

Publish Date
07 Jan 2026

Abstract

Metacognitive strategies have demonstrated positive correlations with writing performance in educational contexts, particularly through planning, monitoring, and evaluating processes. However, existing research predominantly examines final writing products rather than students' actual strategy implementation patterns and perceptions during argumentative essay composition. This study investigated which metacognitive strategy aspects students most frequently employed and how they perceived these strategies in completing writing projects. Employing descriptive qualitative methodology, data were collected through questionnaires from 20 university students enrolled in a genre-based writing course, supplemented by interviews exploring their perceptions analyzed with thematic analysis. Findings revealed self-evaluation as the most consistently implemented aspect (95% for linguistic checking), while self-monitoring demonstrated the lowest and most variable utilization (45% for structural attention). Planning received moderate engagement, with reading before writing practiced by 85% of students, but visual planning by only 25%. Perceptual analysis uncovered a paradox: students recognized consultation and revision as essential yet perceived planning as temporally inefficient. This study concludes that metacognitive awareness does not automatically translate to strategic implementation, revealing a critical gap between declarative knowledge and procedural execution. These findings necessitate pedagogical shifts toward explicit self-monitoring training and demonstrate that metacognitive competence constitutes a fragmented, context-dependent construct requiring integrated instructional approaches beyond isolated strategy awareness.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

metathesis

Publisher

Subject

Education Languange, Linguistic, Communication & Media

Description

METATHESIS is a Journal of English Language, Literature, and Teaching published by Department of English Education, Faculty of Education and Teacher Training, Universitas Tidar. It is published twice a year in April and October. We accept manuscripts within the fields of: (1) English language ...