Exploring Second-Chance Testing as a Practical Form of Mastery Learning

在NSF改善本科生STEM教育计划：教育和人力资源(IUSE：EHR)的支持下，该项目旨在通过调查二次机会测试如何改善学生的学习和保持能力来服务于国家利益。这项工作的意义植根于这样一个观察：一些学生没有通过课程，尽管他们有成功的能力和工作的意愿。这些学生经常不及格，因为他们高估了自己为考试所做的充分准备，或者误解了课程预期。这一失败可能会阻止这些合格的学生坚持STEM专业并加入STEM劳动力大军。二次考试是允许学生参加考试，然后对他们的表现进行反馈的做法。然后，他们被允许进一步学习材料，然后参加第二次同等的考试，以进行某种形式的分数替换。初步数据显示，二次考试提高了平均考试成绩，降低了考试不合格率。该项目将调查有关二次机会测试的最佳做法，并说明其好处。该项目还将研究二次机会测试是否会不成比例地帮助那些传统上在现有课程结构中服务不足的学生。它还将研究如何帮助教师采用这种做法。第二次机会测试可能是一种强大的技术，因为它既利用了“测试效应”(由于刻意提取练习而增加了长期记忆)，也利用了“测试强化学习”(提高了学习者从重新学习一个概念的机会中受益的能力)。此外，它还有可能减轻学生因无法正确评估课程期望值和准备程度而导致的考试失败。伊利诺伊大学关于二次考试的初步数据显示，以平均考试成绩衡量的学生表现有所改善，考试不合格率有所降低。此外，这一数据表明，评分政策的变化可以对哪些学生选择参加第二次考试产生相当大的影响。该项目的目标是更严格地衡量第二次机会测试的好处，制定评分政策的范围及其影响，并更好地了解教师采用第二次机会测试所涉及的因素。该项目将重点研究三个问题。首先，二次测试在多大程度上改善了学生的认知和非认知结果？第二，第二次机会评分政策如何影响学生在第一次机会和随后的第二次机会考试中的认知和非认知结果？第三，二次考试会不会不成比例地帮助那些传统上被一次机会考试结构服务不足的学生？NSF IUSE：EHR计划支持研究和开发项目，以提高所有学生的STEM教育的有效性。通过参与的学生学习路径，该计划支持有前景的实践和工具的创建、探索和实施。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

With support from the NSF Improving Undergraduate STEM Education Program: Education and Human Resources (IUSE: EHR), this project aims to serve the national interest by investigating how second-chance testing improves student learning and retention. The significance of this work is rooted in the observation that some students fail courses, even though they have to ability to succeed and willingness to work. These students often fail because they overestimate the adequacy of their preparation for an exam or misunderstand course expectations. This failure can prevent these qualified students from persisting in STEM majors and joining the STEM workforce. Second-chance testing is the practice of allowing students to take an exam and then giving them feedback on their performance. They are then allowed to further study the material and then take a second, equivalent exam for some form of grade replacement. Preliminary data show that second-chance testing improves average exam scores and reduces exam failure rates. This project will investigate best practices with respect to second-chance testing and characterize its benefits. The project will also study whether second-chance testing disproportionately helps students who are traditionally under-served by existing course structures. It will also study what can be done to help instructors adopt this practice.Second-chance testing can be a powerful technique because it exploits both the "testing effect" (increased long-term memory resulting from deliberate retrieval practice) and "test-potentiated learning" (increased ability of a learner to benefit from an opportunity to restudy a concept). In addition, it offers the potential to mitigate students' failures on exams due to their inability to correctly assess course expectations and their level of readiness. Preliminary data at the University of Illinois on second-chance testing has shown improvements in student performance measured by mean exam scores and a reduction in exam failure rates. In addition, this data showed that variations in the grading policy can exert considerable influence on which students choose to take the second chance exam. The goals of this project are to more rigorously measure the benefits of second-chance testing, map out the scope of grading policies and their impacts, and better understand the factors involved in faculty adoption of second-chance testing. The project will focus on three research questions. First, how much does second-chance testing improve students' cognitive and non-cognitive outcomes? Second, how do second-chance grading policies affect students' cognitive and non-cognitive outcomes on first-chance and subsequent second-chance exams? Third, does second-chance testing disproportionately help students who are traditionally under-served by single opportunity exam structures? The NSF IUSE: EHR Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through the Engaged Student Learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.