Özet:

The main purpose of this study is to investigate whether students' meaningful causal thinking abilities vary with their academic achievement levels, reading comprehension abilities, and gender. The sample of the study consisted of 124 ninth grade students attending a secondary school in Adana City Seyhan District during 2008-2009 academic year. The Meaningful Causal Thinking Evaluation Test, the Biology Academic Achievement Test, and the Reading Comprehension Test (IOWA) were used to collect the data. The study documents significant relationships between meaningful causal thinking and academic achievement, and between meaningful causal thinking and reading comprehension. On the other hand, no significant difference is found between male and female students' meaningful causal thinking abilities. It is concluded that students' academic achievement levels and reading comprehension scores are significant predictors of their meaningful causal thinking ability, but their gender is not. An individual carries all these characteristics in the same cognitive structure and probably uses them in coordination when he/she needs. Therefore, educational activities can be designed based on the relationship between meaningful causal thinking and academic achievement, and between meaningful causal thinking and reading comprehension.

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