USING SELF-REGULATED LEARNING STRATEGIES IN THE READING CURRICULUM TO DEVELOP CONCEPTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEM-SOLVING SKILLS AMONG THIRD PREPARATORY GRADE STUDENTS

This research aims to explore the effectiveness of using certain self-organized learning strategies in the reading curriculum to develop environmental concepts and problem-solving skills among third-grade middle school students. To achieve this objective, the current research relied on the use of the descriptive-analytical method, which involves collecting data relevant to the research topic from previous studies and literature related to the research problem to analyze the objectives of the Arabic language curriculum, and its content for the third-grade middle school level in the second stage of basic education. This analysis aimed to identify the environmental concepts and problem-solving skills included in the curriculum, and to prepare the theoretical framework, build the tools, and design the instructional materials. The research also employed a quasi-experimental method with two experimental groups and one control group, using pre-test, post-test, and delayed measurement to assess the research variables. The goal was to test the effectiveness of the two independent variables (Self-Questioning Strategy and K.W.L Strategy) on the two dependent variables (environmental concepts and problem-solving skills) within the reading curriculum for third-grade middle school students. The research findings indicated the effectiveness of the Self-Questioning Strategy in developing environmental concepts in the reading curriculum for third-grade middle school students. This was evident from the results of the post-application of the environmental concepts test and the environmental problem-solving scale on both the experimental and control groups. There was a significant effect of the training program based on the Self-Questioning Strategy on environmental concepts, which was substantial, as shown by the results of the post-application of the environmental concepts test and the environmental problem-solving scale on the experimental and control groups. This can be attributed to the main focus of the K.W.L Strategy, which is based on metacognitive thinking and the activation of the learner's prior knowledge, making previous knowledge the central point upon which newly acquired knowledge is built. This aligns with the researchers' hypotheses from the first to the tenth. The results pointed to the effectiveness of both the Self-Questioning Strategy and the K.W.L Strategy in developing environmental concepts and problem-solving skills among third-grade middle school students. The study recommended the necessity of incorporating some self-organized learning strategies into the content of the reading curriculum and training Arabic language teachers on how to apply these strategies in the educational process.