Abstract
Introduction: This study addressed the problem of limited empirical evidence on the effective assessment and implementation of metacognitive strategies in accelerated health programs. Certainty-based markings have been implemented in health education to cultivate students’ self-monitoring and regulating skills; however, they have not been evaluated in a foundational course in an accelerated healthcare program. The theoretical framework that grounded this study was the metacognitive theory. Methods: A systematic review of the literature was performed by searching ProQuest, PubMed, EBSCO, and CINAHL databases Using a one-group pre-posttest study design, the research questions explored whether certainty-based markings improved student physical therapists’ test performance, quality of knowledge, and metacognitive self-regulation in a foundational pathophysiology course in an accelerated Doctor of Physical Therapy program. Results: Descriptive analysis of pretests, posttests, and pre-posttests indicated a statistically significant increase in mean change scores across all study modules with a variation in magnitude of effect from small/medium to large and a statistically significant increase in metacognitive self-regulation with a small effect size. Conclusions: This study indicated that certainty-based markings, a cognitive monitoring strategy, improved student physical therapists’ test performance, quality of knowledge, and metacognition. These findings provide empirical evidence regarding the importance of implementing metacognitive strategies in accelerated health programs to enhance the teaching and learning of foundational concepts using keywords.
DOI
Revised document 8-28-25
Recommended Citation
Dias D, Hill CJ, Burke-Doe A. Assessing Student Physical Therapists' Metacognition in a Foundational Course in an Accelerated Curriculum. The Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice. 2025 Oct 15;23(4), Article 30.
