PCC has joined two universities in a nationwide research study to determine if motivational instructions can improve students’ scores on tests. The answer is yes, if the motivational instructions raise the stakes for the student, study data suggest.
The study is significant because increased pressure for accountability has led colleges and universities to conduct exit testing to find out what students have learned, said Dr. Nancee Sorenson, Vice President of Student Development at East Campus and PCC coordinator of the research project. The study was conducted by ETS, a Princeton, N.J.-based non-profit firm that develops and administers numerous standardized tests.
“Students’ scores on learning outcomes assessment tests have potentially huge implications for higher-education institutions, but don’t really impact individual students,” Dr. Sorenson said. “It’s important to determine if motivation makes a difference, so that colleges and universities can employ strategies that lead to more accurate evaluation of student performance.”
One hundred eighteen students from PCC’s East and Downtown campuses, along with 299 students from a master’s institution and 340 from a research university, participated in the study. They took a multiple-choice test derived from ETS’ Proficiency Profile, which measures ability in reading, writing and mathematics; wrote an essay; and answered a survey measuring their motivation.
The students were divided into three groups:
A control group was told their test scores would be used only for research.
An institutional group was told their scores would be averaged with scores from other students at their school in order to evaluate the school’s effectiveness, and this might affect how their school is viewed by the public, and affect the value of their diploma.
A personal group was told their scores might be released to faculty at their school, or to potential employers to evaluate their academic ability.
The Proficiency Profile scores in the institutional and personal student groups were significantly higher than the control group’s scores. “The bottom line is that when a motivator is applied to test-taking, performance improves,” Dr. Sorenson said, noting that the PCC students were debriefed about the study after taking the tests.