The Role of Experience, Gender, and University Degree in Teachers’ Metacognitive Awareness

The present study investigated the effect of three variables namely experience, gender, and university degree on Iranian EFL teachers’ Metacognitive Awareness (MA). In fact, the study was an attempt to find out how the mentioned variables might make the teachers different concerning their MA. To this end, 100 Iranian EFL teachers, who were teaching English at private language institutes, were selected to take part in the present study. They were of different gender, years of teaching experience, and university degrees. The teachers selected completed a Metacognitive Awareness Inventory (MAI) which aimed at measuring individuals’ MA. Analyzing the collected data, it was revealed that experienced teachers were more metacognitive than novice teachers. Furthermore, female teachers were found to be more metacognitive than male ones. Finally, it was indicated that there was not a difference between BA and MA teachers, while Ph.D. teachers outperformed both groups. The findings of the present study can broaden our understanding of teachers’ MA and help language teachers and teacher trainers.

Keywords: Metacognitive Awareness, Gender, University Degree, Experience, Novice.