Data Analysis from Google Doc Study Guide Experi

I analyzed some of the data from our exams in 2301 to see if utilizing Google Docs (as a way for students to collaboratively prepare their own study guide) had any affect on exam scores. We have two sections for the course- one section was given a link and one was not.

 

Students who were given a link to the online study guide scored on average 5 points higher compared to those who were not, which may or not be statistically significant.  The sizes of the sections are different, and a number of other factors may have been at play. 

 

What is interesting is that people who were demonstrated to be "active users" of the collaborative guide (i.e., the ones who did the bulk of composing the guide) scored an average of 12 points higher than the overall average. I did this by keeping a log of those who signed in through Google.  Many users who used the guide logged in, but did so anonymously, so I only have this data for students who actually signed in. 

 

I thought that it may just be that the students who collaborated more were students who were simply high performers. So, I looked at their scores from the first exam, for which no online guide was provided to anyone.  I found that high scorers on exam 1 did not comprise the majority of interactive users of the online guide (perhaps because they felt their methods were working already). Within the group of "active users" who signed into Google, several failed the first exam but earned a high C or low B on the midterm.

 

This seems to indicate that the collaborative, student-authored guide is somewhat helpful overall (if not overwhelmingly so), and is most helpful to average students who interact with the guide to the highest degree.  It also indicated that it is not merely access to a study guide that improves performance, but rather the degree of interaction with relevant materials that is important. 

 

The thing I think is most interesting about the idea of a student-authored, collaborative study guide is that it puts the responsibility of the study guide on the students themselves, and hopefully curtails the idea that they "just" need to know what's on the study guide.

 

Because it did seem to be a helpful tool for students, both sections now have a link to the collaborative guide, and students are already actively creating the final study guide. I will also analyze data from the final exam and see if exam scores rise again amongst study guide authors.