Learning during a collaborative final exam

Abstract

Collaborative testing has been suggested to serve as a good learning activity, for example, compared to individual testing. The aim of the present study was to measure learning at different levels of knowledge during a collaborative final exam in a course in basic methods and statistical procedures. Results on pre- and post-tests taken individually (N = 30) before and after the collaborative part of the final exam confirmed learning effects at the uni- and multi-structural levels, as well as on the relational level of Biggs’ structure of the observed learning outcome (SOLO) taxonomy (Biggs & Collins, 1982). Low performers at pre-test raised their test scores more than high performers. No differences could be generalized at the extended level of knowledge. Results also suggest that it might be preferable to collaborate without first deciding on questions individually. The experimental design can be applied when evaluating learning, at different levels of knowledge, during a variety of learning activities.

Keywords:

• learning
• testing
• collaboration
• knowledge
• evaluation
• experiments

Acknowledgements

The author gratefully acknowledges Dr. Gisela Eckert for valuable input and support.