Twice-Exceptional Students' Use of Metacognitive Skills on a Comprehension Monitoring Task

Abstract

Boys identified as learning-disabled gifted or twice exceptional, at two different grade levels (5th or 6th grades, and 11th or 12th grades), were asked to read a history text with unknown vocabulary words, internal inconsistencies, and prior knowledge violations inserted to make immediate comprehension difficult. The students were asked to read one sentence at a time and report their thoughts verbally. Their verbalizations were analyzed for evidence of how they used metacognitive skills. The older students actively monitored and evaluated their comprehension as they tried to make sense of the text but were more willing to accept problematic text. The younger students were not as active in monitoring their comprehension, but they were less likely to accept the prior knowledge violations.