Date

5-22-2024

Department

School of Education

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy in Education (PhD)

Chair

Michelle Barthlow

Keywords

Curiosity, constructivism, metacognitive bias, metacognition, Google

Disciplines

Education | Psychology

Abstract

The purpose of this experimental, posttest-only control-group study was to determine if there are differences in levels of metacognitive bias between those who do and do not use Google on a practice activity prior to the administration of a general knowledge test, when controlling for epistemic curiosity. The study seeks to help fill the gap in the literature by examining differences in metacognitive bias across not only the experimental variable of Google access, but also by participant variables, providing a more thorough understanding of how differences in individuals may moderate the relationship between Google use and bias. A sample of 140 participants was selected randomly from a population comprised of the student body of two public high schools, both in the state of South Carolina. The study found that Google access resulted in significantly greater metacognitive bias, even after controlling for epistemic curiosity, indicating that Google, and the internet at large, represent a potentially significant pedagogical threat to the prior knowledge and metacognitive accuracy needed to learn. These results highlight the need for further research into instructional practices which utilize internet search tools, curiosity as a state versus curiosity as a trait, and the societal ramifications of unchecked cognitive offloading.

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