The Effect of Student Color Coding of Knowledge Maps and Test Anxiety on Student Learning

Abstract

Students studied a 1,500-word passage in the form of a knowledge map or traditional text. Within the knowledge map and traditional text groups, half of the students studied information that was already color coded, and half were required to color code the information themselves. Those who studied from knowledge maps recalled significantly more than those who studied traditional text. In addition, a marginally significant (p = .08) color-coding and test-anxiety interaction was found. For students who studied materials that were pre-color coded, there was virtually no difference between the free-recall performance of high- and low-test-anxiety groups. By contrast, among students who color coded their own materials, those low in test anxiety performed substantially better on the free-recall test than those high in test anxiety. These results support previous research findings indicating the effectiveness of knowledge maps. In addition, they point to the important role of test anxiety in mediating outcomes associated with demanding and novel tasks, such as student-generated color coding.