Predicting student's critical thinking dispositions in science course through perceived constructivist learning environment and metacognitive self-regulation strategies

The purpose of the study was to investigate the contribution of 7th grade students' perceptions of constructivist learning environment and metacognitive self-regulation strategies in predicting students' critical thinking dispositions in science course. Students' perceptions of constructivist science learning environment consisted of five dimensions which are personal relevance, uncertainty, critical voice, shared control, and student negotiation. Students' metacognitive self-regulation included dimensions of planning, monitoring, and regulation. Critical thinking disposition, on the other hand, consisted of engagement, maturity, and innovativeness dimensions. Participants of the study composed of 678 seventh grade students studying at 15 public schools located in central districts of Erzurum. This was a quantitative study which utilized correlational research methods. The data were collected through Demographic Information Questionnaire, Critical Thinking Disposition Instrument, Constructivist Learning Environment Survey, and Metacognitive Learning Strategies Scale. In order to analyze the data, SPSS 20 and LISREL 8.8 programs were used. The model showing the relationships among students' perceptions of constructivist learning environment, metacognitive self-regulation, and critical thinking disposition was tested through path analysis. Analysis results showed that students' perceptions of constructivist science learning environment and metacognitive self-regulation both statistically significantly and positively predict critical thinking dispositions. Moreover, students who reported high perceived constructivist learning environment used more metacognitive self-regulation strategies than students who experienced low constructivist learning environment. Key Words: Critical thinking dispositions, Constructivist learning environment, Metacognitive self-regulation strategies, Science education