Students Learning Abilities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Students Learning Abilities - Essay Example Students are often advised by teachers and other elders to study for examinations over a period of time, as opposed to ‘cramming’ on the day before a test. Experimental research shows that spacing, a process where information is acquired in small bits over a period of time, allows better retention of facts in memory than when massed learning is used, where it is attempted to absorb all the information in one short sitting. However, the practice of cramming continues- mainly because many students succeed in getting through their examinations by this practice.In the experiments on spaced learning cited above, rote-learning was emphasized on, and participants had to recall facts. The experiments involved testing only vocabulary or obscure facts, which occupy only a small part of education. Whether the subjects were interested or enthusiastic about memorizing these facts and words is not certain. Interest in a topic has been found to have a notable effect on memory and recal l. Thus, it would be interesting to discover if the benefit of spacing persists if the information to be learned is to be understood, not just memorized, and is of particular interest to the student. My hypothesis is that test scores will be significantly higher when the studying is spaced out over days rather than done right before the test, even when a student is highly interested and enthusiastic about a subject - provided that there are no other conditions that would affect test performance.... Thus, it would be interesting to discover if the benefit of spacing persists if the information to be learned is to be understood, not just memorized, and is of particular interest to the student. My hypothesis is that test scores will be significantly higher when the studying is spaced out over days rather than done right before the test, even when a student is highly interested and enthusiastic about a subject - provided that there are no other conditions that would affect test performance. This prediction is based on my observation that very good students who do well on exams usually begin preparing for tests well ahead of time. The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of spacing on test results when the topic is of academic interest to the students. Methods This is an experimental study to determine the difference in test results when two different preparatory approaches are used. The independent study variable will be the type of studying routine that was used, and t he student’s status as being interested in Biology or not. The average test score of the group will be the dependent variable. An experimental design has been chosen in order to ensure that the test preparation time and preparatory material covered is similar and measurable for all the participants in a group. Biology has been chosen as the subject, as it involves reading and understanding, not just memorizing of facts, and is a topic which is highly interesting for some students, and the opposite for others. Various confounding factors could affect the results of this study. First, a group with a higher number of smarter students would have a higher average score. To control for this factor, participants will be assorted into the groups using stratification for