Traditional assessment of skill performance provides critical information regarding characteristics of the skill such as form, but overlooks other aspects of skill learning such as student perceptions. This research investigated several research questions. The main research question was if student cognitive processes were related to achievement. The participants in the study were 151 college students enrolled in fifteen-week basic instruction bowling classes. Bowling was used to have objective scores for improvement. The students were divided into three skill groups (high, low skill-high improvement, and low skill-low improvement) based on initial bowling averages and ending improvement. The instruments used for data collection were the modified CPQPE, student demographic and thought questionnaires, and a teacher questionnaire asking them to rate initial and ending skill level and improvement, and also the student cognitive processes measured on the CPQPE. Thoughts were collected at class 2, 4, and 8 (class met once a week). The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson Product-Moment correlations, multiple regressions, and ANOVA. The findings showed that neither the total score nor the score on the sub-components on the modified CPQPE related to actual improvement. The results did reveal however that the total score and the self-regulation/strategy use component on the modified CPQPE were related to student perceptions of skill level and improvement at the time they took the CPQPE. It was also found the students and teachers could accurately rate skill level but not improvement. The teachers were unable to accurately rate the students use of cognitive processes. An interesting result was that teacher ratings of student cognition were related to teacher ratings of skill level and improvement. For the skill groups, it was found that the high improvement group significantly reduced their negative thoughts from class 2 to class 8. All groups began with the same number of motivating thoughts, but only the high skill and the high improvement group greatly increased their number from class 2 to 4. All groups showed the same pattern for skill outcome thoughts. For skill technique thoughts, the low improvement and the high improvement groups increased from class 2 to 4, but the low improvement declined to class 8 while the high improvement group continued to increase. Lastly, for off task thoughts, the high skill and the low improvement increased from class 2 to 4 the declined to class 8. The high improvement group however remained the same across the collection times. Keyword(s): assessment, measurement/evaluation, performance