Online Study Groups: Reciprocal Peer Questioning versus Mnemonic Devices

Abstract

One hundred sixty students in an educational psychology course used WebCT Discussions to satisfy one of two study group conditions, reciprocal peer questioning or mnemonic devices. Students made postings according to their assigned study strategy in order to facilitate the learning of their group. At the end of the academic term, student permission was obtained to use three types of data for purposes of the investigation: 1) course grades; 2) WebCT records; and 3) rating scale responses that assessed personal evaluation of the virtual study groups. There were no differences between the two study conditions in terms of academic achievement. However, students in the reciprocal peer questioning condition made more postings and read more articles than students in the mnemonics group. Correspondingly, students in the reciprocal peer questioning group reported higher levels of satisfaction with the virtual study experience.

Learning Style under Two Web‐Based Study Conditions

“…Despite limited evidence of their effectiveness (Johnson, 2006b), web-based peer study groups are increasingly available to college students (Shale, 2002;Tait & Mills, 2003). Reportedly, 72% of American institutes of higher education provide some form of web-based peer tutoring (Miller & Lu, 2003).…”

Why and how do undergraduates study in groups?

“…Thus, group study may help encourage students to use active, deep, desirably difficult strategies for learning; as a corollary, students in group settings may be less tempted to use nonelaborative strategies that may seem obvious (and easy) when they are alone (e.g., rereading and underlining). Indeed, prior research on specific study strategies reported during structured group learning sessions indicates the use of the types of active strategies reported in the current study (Johnson, 2006;Sawyer & Berson, 2004).…”

“…Group study may also enhance deep thinking via enhanced verbalization of thoughts, ideas, and strategies (Girash, 2014). Research focusing on learning strategies in structured group study sessions has suggested that students use discussion, testing, and mnemonic devices (Johnson, 2006), as well as dual-coding, self-referencing, and paraphrasing (Sawyer & Berson, 2004). There is, however, limited research toward a general understanding of which strategies are typically chosen by undergraduates in a broader array of group settings; and further, which strategies are correlated with academic performance.…”

“…Many studies targeting learning outcomes of group study have focused on structured collaborative learning—that is, class- or assignment-specific group work that is to some degree teacher-driven (e.g., Cai, 2013; Chen & Chen, 2015; Colbeck, Campbell, & Bjorklund, 2000; Johnson, 2006; Ounnas, Davis, & Millard, 2009; Phipps, Phipps, Kask, & Higgins, 2001; Springer, Stanne, & Donovan, 1999; Tanner, Chatman, & Allen, 2003). Whereas a vital component of collaborative learning is that a group of students are working together to achieve a common academic goal (Gokhale, 1995), it is important to note that our operational definition for group studying allows for a more global interpretation: a group study session involves two or more students, takes place outside of class time, and does not include supplementary instruction led by teaching assistants or tutors.…”