Metacognitive Calibration Deficits in Second-Language Academic Writing: A Longitudinal Classroom-Based Analysis of EFL Undergraduate Cohorts in Tertiary Institutions

Abstract

This study investigates metacognitive calibration accuracy and its relationship to academic writing proficiency among English as a Foreign Language (EFL) undergraduates across three consecutive semesters. Drawing on a longitudinal quasi-experimental design involving 214 participants from two tertiary institutions in South Korea and Poland, the research employs think-aloud protocol analysis, self-regulated learning inventories, and corpus-assisted discourse analysis to identify systematic calibration deficits in self-assessment of argumentative writing tasks. Findings indicate that students with low metacognitive monitoring capacity consistently overestimate syntactic complexity and underestimate pragmatic coherence in their written output. Instructional scaffolding interventions targeting calibration recalibration yielded statistically significant gains (p < .01) in holistic writing scores. These results carry substantive implications for formative assessment design, writing-across-the-curriculum frameworks, and EFL teacher professional development programs in higher education contexts.