THE EFFECTS OF MASTERY CRITERIA AND ASSIGNMENT LENGTH ON COLLEGE‐STUDENT TEST PERFORMANCE¹

Abstract

This study analyzed the function of two components of a personalized instruction course -mastery criteria for passing a test and assignment length. A high mastery criterion (100% correct) and short assignments produced better test performance than either a low mastery criterion (60% correct) or long assignments (four short assignments combined) on both study question items that students had in their possession and probe items that were not available to students in advance.

Research on the Personalized System of Instruction

“…Calhoun found that Group A was superior to each of the other groups in his study at high levels of significance. Semb (1974) also found that students who worked on small units of material performed better on later major exams than students who worked on material in larger units. Nelson andBennett (1973) andO'Neill, Johnston, Walters, andRasheed (1975) reported more consistent progress for students in PSI courses in which units were short.…”

“…Relaxation of this requirement leads to a decline in the effectiveness of PSI. The basic demonstration was provided by Semb (1974), who used two passing criteria in an introductory child development course. A high mastery criterion (100% correct) produced better test performance than a low mastery criterion (60% correct) on both recall and generalization items.…”

Analysis of Undergraduates’ Attendance at Class Meetings with and without Grade-Related Contingencies: A Contrast Effect

“…Investigators (e.g., 2,3,4,5) repeatedly have shown PSI to be effective in establishing higher student achievement than traditional lecture methods of instruction. In PSI, students obtain study guide questions and small reading assignments and determine when to meet individually with a proctor to take quizzes and examinations.…”

A Review of PSI Course Features and Selected Concerns for Their Implementation

“…Studies have shown that when the "mastery-over-small-steps" requirement is held constant, and the other features are allowed to vary, final exam performance remains at about the same level. On the other hand, when the mastery requirement is allowed to vary with the remaining features held constant, final exam performance also varies with those scoring highest on the module tests related to those scoring highest on the final exams [3,4]. These findings suggest that it is desirable to maintain the master-over-small-steps feature and that the mastery criterion should be set at a high level.…”