The purpose of this research was to seek evidence of awareness of metacognitive processes and intertextuality in the reading comprehension of students in an adult basic education class. Its purpose was to interweave several strands of research investigation and theory to explain the reading and writing capabilities of a representative population in an adult basic education class. This action research in the form of inquiry is described by Weirauch and Kuhne, (2000), and by Neimi in 1989 in Quigley's, Fulfilling the Promise of Adult and Continuing Education. It consists of part action research and part advocacy in a mixed methods approach with an emphasis on improving the education of adults returning to school to further their job prospects or remediate their lack of education (p. 56). The participants were all working adults in an Adult Basic Education class with either a high school diploma or a GED. The four components to the research design were two survey instruments: Mokhtari and Richardson's "Metacognitive Awareness of Reading Strategies Inventory" (MARSI) and Schraw and Dennison's "Metacognitive Awareness Inventory" (MAI). There were three reading-comprehension modules taken from standard popular and school literature coupled with written impressions and thoughts following both the first and second readings. The illustration requirement captured an aspect of the reading that the student felt was emotionally significant or had a strong visual element. The difference between this research and other research in the field is the inclusion of a rich picture description module designed to capture non-conscious elements of understanding and to counter any effects of self-report. One finding of this study shows that people often do not know how much they do not know, and tend to either overestimate or underestimate their abilities. A second finding is that the rich picture illustration revealed understandings beyond the participants' written expression.