PhD Degree Awarded to Mr. Mahmoud Kulaib Saeed Sultan in English Language

Mr. Mahmoud Kulaib Saeed Sultan ‎was awarded a PhD degree in English Language for his dissertation titled: The Effectiveness of Metacognitive Strategies in Developing Writing Skills of Yemeni University Students and Their Attitudes, which was submitted to the Department of English, Faculty of Languages – Sana’a University. The dissertation defense was held on Wednesday, December 10, 2025.

The PhD Viva-Voce Committee, which was formed based on a resolution issued by the Graduate Studies and Scientific Research Council, consisted of the following:

#	Committee Members	Designation	Position
1	Assoc. Prof. Mujeeb Ali Murshed Qasim	Internal Examiner	Chair
2	Prof. Mohammed Abdu Ahmed Al-Mekhlafi	Main Supervisor	Member
3	Assoc. Prof. Mohammed Hussein Al-Ansi	External Examiner	Member

The study aimed to:

Investigate the effectiveness of employing metacognitive strategies in developing writing skills, specifically paragraph and essay writing, among second-year students at the Faculty of Languages, Sana’a University.
Assess the attitudes of learners in the experimental group toward the use of metacognitive strategies in writing.

The study yielded a number of key findings summarized as follows:

Statistically significant differences were observed between the mean post‑test scores of the experimental and control groups, with higher performance in the experimental group attributable to the application of metacognitive strategies.
Students at the Faculty of Languages expressed positive attitudes toward the use of metacognitive strategies in writing.

In light of these findings, the researcher recommended:

Supporting teachers with techniques and activities that integrate metacognitive strategies, enabling students to effectively practice these strategies in text writing.
Encouraging students to learn and apply the core stages of metacognitive strategies used in developing writing skills.

The dissertation defense was attended by a number of academics, researchers, and specialists, students, colleagues, and the researcher’s family.