A QUIZ TO SELF-MEASURE STUDY EFFICIENCY

I want to start this essay with three assertions that I have made previously on this blog.   They are not radical.

(1) – Many students leave high school without a good understanding of how to learn.  Some are fantastic but many rely too heavily on memorization and techniques that do not necessarily work for them.  They struggle in college and do not even know why.  They become frustrated.  If you can provide help you will improve them as students in your class but also throughout their college experience.  That is why I encourage my students to read Make It Stick.

(2) – Many students have trouble determining how well they are studying.  They spend time, but their studies can be rather random and disorganized.   They seem unable to gauge how well they are doing.  They often do not know they have weaknesses until they show up at a test and cannot answer basic questions.   The old saying that, “You don’t know what you don’t know” certainly seems to apply to some students as they prepare for a class.

(3) – Students are most interested in making learning improvements around test dates.   For a few days, a teacher really can grab their attention.  The frustration that can rise after a test provides fertile ground for suggested changes in study habits.  

I gave a test to my introductory students last week.  Some walked out happy while others didn’t.  I wanted to address those students who were not happy.   Within a few hours, I composed a little 8-question quiz to help them judge how well they were working in my class.  I reminded them of every possible technique that they could use to learn the material.   I wanted to show them what excellent preparation might look like so they could measure themselves against that standard.  I provided a grading scale.  

I want to repeat one of those sentences because I think it is so important.  I wonder how often students are provided with this type of guidance. 

“I wanted to show them what excellent preparation might look like so they could measure 

  themselves against that standard.”  

I am always looking to do things that I have never seen done before.   This one counts. 

I replicated this email and the quiz that I sent to my students below.  For better or worse, this is a very personal list of techniques – they are the ones that I use and recommend for my class.   If you want to do something like this, you will have to design your own quiz questions.   But that is not too hard.  Just answer one question—what would perfect preparation look like in your class?—and you will have an outline for your quiz.  Do notice the grading scale at the bottom of the list.

**

To:  My Introductory Accounting Students

Students often get to the end of the semester in this class and seem puzzled.   “I wanted to make an A but I wound up making a B and I’m not sure why I didn’t make the A.   I would have liked that.”   Or, “I wanted to make a B but I finished with a C and I really don’t like having that C.  I wish I had tried harder.”  

After the semester is over, those reflections are useless.   I would really like for you to consider where your work is heading right now.  I developed a quiz to help you score yourself as a measure of what grade you are trying to make in this class.   Take it.   Compute the grade.   See where you seem to be going and whether you like that (since you still have time to improve).  Be honest.   The truth is good for you.

(1) – How many classes have you missed so far this semester?

--If your answer is zero or one, then that is GREAT.   You gain more by being in class than in any other single experience.  There is no substitute for being here, being part of the discussion.

--If your answer is two, then that is GOOD.

--If your answer is more than two, then that needs IMPROVEMENT.

(2) – On the first day of the semester, I suggested that you spend at least one hour getting ready for each upcoming class.  I think for an introductory class that meets three times each week, that is a good goal.  How often do you spend at least one hour getting ready for an upcoming class?

--If your answer is virtually every class (90 percent of the classes), then that is GREAT.   Nothing beats spending the time to get ready for class.   Many students look for short cuts but they are fooling themselves.   Whether it is sports or class, you need to invest serious time in preparation.

--If your answer is most of the time (75 to 90 percent of the classes), then that is GOOD.

--If your answer is less than 75 percent of the time, then that needs IMPROVEMENT.

(3) – On the first day of the semester, I suggested that you spend 30 minutes reviewing each class and getting the knowledge organized.  My recommendation was that you do that within 24 hours after the class.  How often do you spend 30 minutes reviewing each class within 24 hours?

--If your answer is virtually every class (90 percent of the classes), then that is GREAT.   Knowledge seeps out of the brain very quickly if not reinforced and organized.  The book Make It Stick emphasizes that over and over.

--If your answer is most of the time (75 to 90 percent of the classes), then that is GOOD.

--If your answer is less than 75 percent of the time, then that needs IMPROVEMENT.

(4) – How many times have you come to my office to ask a question or get a clarification?  

--If your answer is three times or more, then that is GREAT.  Successful students recognize when they need help and go get it right then.  The material is hard.  You are not in this battle alone.

--If your answer is one or two times, then that is GOOD.

--If your answer is none, then that needs IMPROVEMENT.

(5) – I have sent out a number of email practice problems almost immediately after our class sessions, often with answers attached.   How frequently have you worked those questions within 48 hours of receiving them?

--If your answer is virtually every time (let’s say 90 percent), then that is GREAT.   This gives you a chance for a review immediately after class to make sure you picked up the key points in class. 

--If your answer is most of the time (75 to 90 percent), then that is GOOD.

--If your answer is less than 75 percent of the time, then that needs IMPROVEMENT.

(6) – You have received PowerPoint flash cards as an organized learning tool.   Each chapter has about 90 of those cards with a whole lot of learning activities set up in a logical sequence.   Which of the following best describes your use of the PowerPoint flash cards?

--If your answer is that you went through at least half of the cards for each chapter as the material was being covered, then that is GREAT.   I developed these cards specifically for this course and they should help you learn the material in an efficient manner.  They supplement our class coverage.

--If your answer is that you went through them in the days right before the second test as a review technique, then that is GOOD.

--If your answer is that you largely ignored the Power Point flash cards, then that needs IMPROVEMENT.

(7) – On virtually every page of the textbook, there is a Test Yourself question to help you make sure you comprehended what you had just read.   What percent of those Test Yourself questions did you work as you read the chapter?

--If your answer is that you did 2/3 or more of the Test Yourself questions as you read the chapter, then that is GREAT.   Again, as Make It Stick talks about, reading and then immediately practicing is a great learning technique.

--If your answer is that you did not pay much attention to them while reading but looked at 50 percent or more as a review for the second test, then that is GOOD.

--If your answer is that you did not pay much attention to the Test Yourself question, then that needs IMPROVEMENT.

(8) – I sent out answers to the multiple-choice problems and true-false questions at the end of each textbook chapter.   How much time did you spend answering these questions and checking your answers?

--If your answer is that you worked half or more of those multiple-choice and true-false questions by the time we finished the chapter or shortly thereafter, that is GREAT.   Again, this work gives you another way to check the knowledge you are learning as well as a practice technique.

--If your answer is that you worked half or more of those questions right before the second test, then that is GOOD.

--If you pretty much ignored the end of chapter problems and questions, then that needs IMPROVEMENT.

GRADING.  

Give yourself 2 points for every GREAT answer.

Give yourself 1 point for every GOOD answer.

Give yourself 0 points for every needs IMPROVEMENT answer.

Sum up the points.

If you scored 13 or more points, then I would assume that you are working to make an A.   You might not make it but you are doing the right things.  I am not at all unhappy with your preparation.

If you scored 7 to 12 points on this little quiz, then I would assume that you are working to make a B.   You are definitely working but you are not pushing yourself to an “Outstanding” level.  There is more you can and probably should do.

If you scored 0 to 6 points, you are probably praying that you will make a C.   There is nothing wrong with that but you should be honest with yourself about your goals.

Obviously, this is just guesswork on my part but it does give you a way to measure your effort and your ambition to do well in this course. 

If you want to do better on the third test, move your quiz grade up as quickly as possible.  Shoot to get 13 points.

Communications, Evolution, and Motivation

I think three essential keys to having a successful class are:

--Communications – Your students cannot read your mind.   If you want to direct them or influence them, you have to have a way to communicate with them.  In my opinion, teaching in college at a high level becomes almost impossible if you do not have some effective method of communication.

--Evolution – I want my students to get better as students as the semester progresses   It is not just that I want them to learn more material.   I literally want them to become better, more effective students.  I want them to grow as thinkers--over and above the subject matter that I teach.

--Motivation – Students are human beings.   They become tired.  They become discouraged and frustrated.   I am not a cheerleader, but I do believe my students will improve if I both push them and entice them to work harder and think more deeply.  A litte push can be helpful.

When I tell the above to any group, someone will invariable ask me for an example.   Okay, here is one from my classes today.

My students have a few days off for our fall break.   I want them to rest and relax, but I also want them to come back with a renewed vigor about my class.   I do not want the semester to be a slow slide into mediocrity.   Right before they left, I emailed them the following note.

Will they all read it and make some changes?   No, of course not – that is silly.   Nevertheless, I suspect a few students will read it and think about it and, perhaps, come back ready to do better.  I very much want them to avoid giving up and accepting an average grade.  Instead of coasting out the semester, I want them to try harder and try smarter.   For me, and hopefully a few of my students, this email combines communication, evolution, and motivation.  

At half time, what message do you want to send to your students?

**

Email to my students:

I have an assignment for you for fall break.   It is not the typical type of assignment where I ask you to write a paper or do some practice problems.

Our course is not yet half-complete but it is getting there.   You have approximately 20 percent of your grade finalized.  We have been together now for enough weeks that I am no longer a mystery to you.   I guarantee that you now know what I want.   If I asked each of you to write a paragraph titled, “What does the professor really want from me?” you would all get the grade of A, maybe A+.

I always talk a lot about half-time adjustments.   A football or basketball team is behind at half time and looks destined for defeat.   At half time, the coach and players make necessary adjustments and suddenly look like an entirely new team in the second half.   They turn things around and march on to victory.   It is not a rare event.   It happens every weekend.   Half-time adjustments are just a necessary part of a long game. 

I read yesterday a quote from Jack Welch, the legendary CEO of General Electric back in its better days (1981-2001).    Few CEOs have ever achieved the status of Welch.   The quote was a simple one, “Good business leaders create a vision, articulate the vision, passionately own the vision, and relentlessly drive it to completion.”   I think if you are looking for a guide to success, those words are pretty darn powerful. 

As far as I am concerned, you are in the business of being a college student.   Yes, you have many other responsibilities and interests but if you are a full-time college student trying to attain an education, then you are in the business of being a college student.  After four (or so) years, this college student business might prove successful or it might not.  I believe you need a vision of your approach to that business, one that you can passionately own and relentlessly drive to completion.  That vision, I think, will help make those years more likely to be ones that you look back on with pride.

Here is my assignment for you over our fall break.   Even if it is not quite half time of this semester, I want you to consider what adjustments you need to try in your approach to this course.   For some, these changes might be slight, for others more dramatic.  You know what I want from you.  You have to decide (sooner rather than later) how you need to improve your approach and then you need to do it.  It is a two-step approach.  It is up to you.   I just want you to consider the possibilities.

However, I want you to take on this assignment with Jack Welch’s words in mind.  Take some time to do some serious thinking about your vision of YOU as a college student, create and articulate the vision you really want.  I think Jack Welch delivered some great business advice but also some great personal advice.  I feel that everyone needs a vision of their business that is so right for them that they feel led to drive relentlessly toward its completion.  

I realize you are mostly 18-20 year olds, but it does not take much of a view of the world to realize that a whole lot of people do not have much of a vision for their business or for themselves.   Mediocrity is not hard to find.   I think colleges should push the idea of a personal vision more.  Your vision of yourself will undoubtedly change over time but now is the perfect time (here at fall break) to start developing a vision of YOU in your business of being a college student.

Assignment:   Figure out your vision for your business and then consider any half-time adjustments that will drive you toward that vision.