Exploring the Relationship of Iranian EFL Learners' Critical Thinking and Self-regulation with their Reading Comprehension Ability

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of Iranian EFL learners' critical thinking and self-regulation with their reading comprehension ability across beginners, intermediate, and advanced levels of proficiency. In addition, this relationship investigated across beginners, intermediate, and advanced levels of proficiency. To this end, 70 learners studying English language teaching and English literature who were selected through convenient sampling procedure completed a reading placement test, the Critical Thinking dispositions questionnaire and self-regulation questionnaire. The findings indicated a statistically significant correlation for those with greater critical thinking skill among advanced and intermediate learners, while there was no significant relationship between self-regulation and reading comprehension ability except for the advanced group of learners. The study has implications for course designers, teachers and students. (C) 2016 Published by Elsevier Ltd.