Francisco Silva, Dept. of Psychology
One goal I had for The Psychology of Motivation was that students develop a high-level,
integrative understanding of phenomena, procedures, data, and conceptual issues. However,
I wasn't sure that the average student could perform at this level. Therefore, I needed
some teaching/learning aid that would help students with less effective study habits.
Specifically, I thought that students needed to have a reason to regularly review and
think about course content. The procedure that I implemented provided a small, immediate
incentive that would lead to a bigger, delayed payoff.
The Procedure: Student-Generated Test Questions
Students were asked, but not required, to prepare 2 essay questions following each
class. The questions had to be based on material that was covered in the previous class,
or from the related text. Also, students had to provide answers for their questions.
At the beginning of each class, I would randomly select a student to present one of
their questions and answers. The student would then stand up and read the question and
answer to the class. I would add any missing information, and we would usually spend a
minute or two discussing the question and answer. I would then call on a second student to
present another question and answer. The whole process took about 5 to 7 minutes.
Students had to present integrative, high-level questions. Students had to prepare 2
questions so they could not say, "I had the same question." If they were not in
class when their name was called, they forfeited that opportunity to earn the bonus
percent.
How did this affect the students' behavior? It seemed to me that students attended more
classes, probably because they could potentially earn bonus points and obtain questions
that might appear on an exam. The students' responses on the course evaluation indicated
that they were pleased with the course (it received a rating of 3.3). They said that the
course was hard work, but in a non-punitive way. Almost all comments about presenting
questions and answers were positive.
From my perspective, this simple procedure helped students stay on task and provided
them with a more obvious degree of control than the typical "review your notes, study
hard, and you'll get a good grade" approach. In essence, that is what they were
doing; but, asking them to prepare questions and answers provided the means and incentive
for doing so that many students lack.
This Classroom Assessment Technique (CAT) did more than make my students review; they
served as an indicator for my teaching. If the student questions were dismal, I took it as
a sign that they were not understanding the material. When their questions were at a
higher level, then I assumed they understood the course topics at a higher level. They
soon learned it was to their advantage to write higher level questions since those tended
to be the ones I would put on the test. The technique benefited student learning and gave
me feedback that was useful as well.
Silva, Francisco. (1995). Student-generated test questions. Teaching Resources
Center, Indiana University 7(2). |
