PSYC 2: Biological Foundations - Fall 2012 - Professor Claffey

Test 3 Analysis

Exam was taken on Friday, November 9th, 2012

The test had 37 graded multiple choice questions and 2 extra credit questions.

Descriptive Statistics

Number of students: 279 (23 less than test 1, 6 less than test 2)
Median without extra credit: 29.8/37 (80.5%, 2.1% higher test 2)
Median with extra credit: 31.0/37 (83.7%)

(metrics below all include extra credit)
Mean: 30.0/37 (81%)
SD: 5.95 (15.3%)
Reliability coefficient: 0.84
Max: 39/37 (both extra credit correct)
Min: 10/37

Grade distribution

	Expected on Test 1*	Expected on Test 2*	Expected on Test 3*	Test 1 grades	Test 2 grades	Test 3 grades
A	45%	28%	34%	31%	18%	34%
B	40%	45%	41%	26%	30%	26%
C	9%	19%	16%	17%	22%	18%
D	2%	3%	4%	10%	12%	11%
F	--	--	--	17%	19%	11%
NA	5%	5%	6%

* Expected by students - Based on pre-test survey question

Studying

In a survey of studying methods, students who studied based on the unit questions scored the highest (85.3%), though less than a third of the class used this method. There was no difference between reviewing notes once or multiple times. Students that could only dedicate a fixed amount of time understandably scored worse than the other study methods.

test 3 study method

Survey Questions

The beginning of the exam included the following 3 optional survey questions. Response rate was 95-96% depending on the question.

Survey text:

These questions are optional and do not count towards your grade.

1. What grade are you expecting to get ON THIS EXAM?
a. A - to A+
b. B- to B+
c. C- to C+
d. below C-

2. How did you know when you had studied enough for this test?
a. I had a fixed amount of time that I allotted
b. I reviewed the notes once
c. I reviewed the notes multiple times
d. I could answer “Unit: Organization” questions
e. I don’t feel ready