Promoting Student Success in Early College Credit Courses
Category: Student Learning
Instrument Overview
Expert Notes AvailableView expert commentary on strengths and cautions for this instrument
Strengths
Validated for assessing metacognitive skillfulness in chemistry problem solving, including identifying students who may benefit from metacognitive interventions. Has been used to evaluate changes in metacognition following instruction or interventions; higher MCA-I scores also corresponded to more metacognitive problem-solving strategies.
Cautions
Evidence is primarily from postsecondary chemistry students; it has not been established for predicting chemistry achievement or making high-stakes individual decisions.
The Metacognitive Activities Inventory (MCA-I) assesses students’ use of metacognition during chemistry problem solving—how they plan, monitor, and evaluate their thinking and problem-solving processes. Developed and validated by Sandi-Ureña (2008), the MCA-I was created to address the difficulty of reliably assessing metacognition, an internal process that is not directly observable. It is a prospective measure, asking students before they do a task how they expect to approach a chemistry problem.
The MCA-I was developed as part of a multimethod assessment approach, alongside IMMEX, a computer-based system that captures students’ metacognitive activity while they solve chemistry problems. The two methods produced convergent evidence supporting the assessment’s reliability and validity. The study also used the MCA-I to evaluate collaborative and problem-based learning interventions, finding increased awareness and use of metacognition among undergraduate chemistry students.
Organization
Topic
Collection Category(ies)
Content
Respondent
Student
Administration Information
Length
27 items
Access and Use
Contact
Email Guillermo Sandi-urena at gsandiu@clemson.edu
Open Access
Yes
Use in Research
Blackford, K. A., Greenbaum, J. C., Redkar, N. S., Gaillard, N. T., Helix, M. R., & Baranger, A. M. (2023). Metacognitive regulation in organic chemistry students: How and why students use metacognitive strategies when predicting reactivity. Chemistry Education Research and Practice, 24(3), 828–851. https://doi.org/10.1039/D2RP00208F
Temel, S., Dincol Ozgur, S., Sen, S., & Yilmaz, A. (2012). The examination of metacognitive skill levels and usage of learning strategies of preservice chemistry teachers. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 46, 1445–1449. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2012.05.318
Sandi-Urena, S., Cooper, M. M., & Stevens, R. (2012). Effect of cooperative problem-based lab instruction on metacognition and problem-solving skills. Journal of Chemical Education, 89(6), 700–706.
Sandi-Urena, S., Cooper, M. M., & Stevens, R. (2011). Enhancement of metacognition use and awareness by means of a collaborative intervention. International Journal of Science Education, 33(3), 323–340.
Psychometrics (additional guidance)
Reliability
Main study: .85 on pretest, .92 on posttest
Replication: .87 on pretest, .91 on posttest
Psychometric References
Sandi-urena, Guillermo, ""Design and Validation of a Multimethod Assessment of Metacognition and Study of the Effectiveness of Metacognitive Interventions"" (2008). All Dissertations. 241. https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_dissertations/241
Cooper, M. M., Sandi-Urena, S., & Stevens, R. (2008). Reliable multi method assessment of metacognition use in chemistry problem solving. Chemistry Education Research and Practice, 9(1), 18–24.
Item Type
Likert
