Use of Exam Wrappers to Enhance Students’ Metacognitive Skills in a Large Introductory Food Science and Human Nutrition Course

Gezer-Templeton, P. Gizem; Mayhew, Emily J.; Korte, Debra S.; Schmidt, Shelly J.

doi:10.1111/1541-4329.12103

Cited by 64 publications

(73 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…We observed this pattern in both semesters, as higher-performing students had significantly higher calibration scores, and thus higher postdiction accuracy, than their lower-performing counterparts. We also found that students who over-estimated their exam performance in both semesters had significantly lower exam scores than students who under-estimated, which is consistent with the findings of previous studies ( 6 , 8 , 22 ). Aligned with the goals of the curriculum, we observed a significant decrease in over-postdictors from Exam 1 to Exam 3 in both semesters, and also found that lower-performing students exhibited a significant increase in postdiction accuracy.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…Why or Why not?”), and 3) to further describe the study strategies and behaviors that worked for them or that needed to change for improved performance on the next exam ( Appendix 2 ). This assignment is similar to cognitive wrappers or exam wrappers that have been employed across disciplines to help students improve their learning and self-regulatory skills ( 21 , 22 ). See Andaya ( 15 ) for a full description of the Exam Review activity used in this study and its impact on students.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Curricular Activities that Promote Metacognitive Skills Impact Lower-Performing Students in an Introductory Biology Course

Dang

Chiang

Brown

et al. 2018

J Microbiol Biol Educ.

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This study explores the impacts of repeated curricular activities designed to promote metacognitive skills development and academic achievement on students in an introductory biology course. Prior to this study, the course curriculum was enhanced with pre-assignments containing comprehension monitoring and self-evaluation questions, exam review assignments with reflective questions related to study habits, and an optional opportunity for students to explore metacognition and deep versus surface learning. We used a mixed-methods study design and collected data over two semesters. Self-evaluation, a component of metacognition, was measured via exam score postdictions, in which students estimated their exam scores after completing their exam. Metacognitive awareness was assessed using the Metacognitive Awareness Inventory (MAI) and a reflective essay designed to gauge students’ perceptions of their metacognitive skills and study habits. In both semesters, more students over-predicted their Exam 1 scores than under-predicted, and statistical tests revealed significantly lower mean exam scores for the over-predictors. By Exam 3, under-predictors still scored significantly higher on the exam, but they outnumbered the over-predictors. Lower-performing students also displayed a significant increase in exam postdiction accuracy by Exam 3. While there was no significant difference in students’ MAI scores from the beginning to the end of the semester, qualitative analysis of reflective essays indicated that students benefitted from the assignments and could articulate clear action plans to improve their learning and performance. Our findings suggest that assignments designed to promote metacognition can have an impact on students over the course of one semester and may provide the greatest benefits to lower-performing students.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Curricular Activities that Promote Metacognitive Skills Impact Lower-Performing Students in an Introductory Biology Course

Dang

Chiang

Brown

et al. 2018

J Microbiol Biol Educ.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Exam wrappers: Exam wrappers are short, reflective writing activities that asked students to review their applied study strategies in relation to their performance on an exam with a focus on adjusting their future learning practices. Reference: Gezer-Templeton, Mayhew, Korte, and Schmidt (2017).…”

Section: Course Assignmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the influence of course elements and emotional connection to content on students’ approaches to learning in an introductory food science and human nutrition course

Schmidt

2020

J of Food Science Edu

Self Cite

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Researchers have identified three approaches to learning-surface, strategic, and deep. These approaches are influenced by various contextual and student factors, including teaching methods, assessments, and relevance to future career. The global objective of this study was to explore the influence of course elements and students' emotional connection to section content on students' approaches to learning in an introductory Food Science and Human Nutrition course. Students completed two questionnaires for the Nutrition and Health (NH) and Composition and Chemistry (CC) course sections: (a) Entwistle's ASSIST Inventory and (b) a questionnaire developed to assess students' perceived usefulness of assignments, learning resources, and emotional connection to section content. Students' approaches to learning did not significantly differ between NH and CC sections, with the majority reporting use of strategic or deep approaches. Generally, positive correlations were obtained for learners who used the deep and strategic approaches and their perceived usefulness of assignments and learning resources. In stark contrast, negative correlations were identified for learners who used the surface approach and their perceived usefulness of learning resources and assignments. Regarding emotional connection to section content, compared to learners who used the deep and strategic approaches, learners who used the surface approach did not enjoy and felt anxious about learning the content in both sections. Furthermore, based on regression analysis, the surface learning approach was a predictor for low exam scores in both sections. Based on these findings, instructors should implement practices in course design, instructional methods, and assessment strategies that help students choose deep and strategic approaches to learning, while minimizing surface approaches.

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“…In addition to having positive impact, or at least no negative one, exam-wrappers are easy to implement. According to Gezer-Templeton et al, wrappers require short time for both, students to fill and instructors to prepare and assess, mostly because it is two pages at most, of short-answer questions [15]. Further, they are repeatable and can be adapted from course to course easily.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exam-Wrappers as a Tool to Enhance Students’ Metacognitive Skills in Machine Element Design Class

Bojairami

Driscoll

2019

PCEEA

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Acquiring metacognitive skills, i.e. selfassessment of study behaviors through exam-wrappers, would potentially have concrete positive effects on students learning. The purpose of this study was to assess the link between students’ performance and study behaviors, to analyze their metacognitive skills. Exam-wrappers consisted of 4 fundamental questions and were utilized in an undergraduate engineering class, Machine Element Design, at McGill University. Data were later collected and analyzed using statistical analyses. Results showed an overall increasing trend between the quality of reflection and students grades’ improvement, with the highest being a 47.5 increase in grade for a student who scored a 10/10 reflection. Analyzed cases led to the conclusion that students were able to use their metacognitive skills to self-assess, and accordingly adjust their study behaviors and goals, to thrive at a better performance.

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Use of Exam Wrappers to Enhance Students’ Metacognitive Skills in a Large Introductory Food Science and Human Nutrition Course

Cited by 64 publications

References 10 publications

Curricular Activities that Promote Metacognitive Skills Impact Lower-Performing Students in an Introductory Biology Course

Curricular Activities that Promote Metacognitive Skills Impact Lower-Performing Students in an Introductory Biology Course

Exploring the influence of course elements and emotional connection to content on students’ approaches to learning in an introductory food science and human nutrition course

Exam-Wrappers as a Tool to Enhance Students’ Metacognitive Skills in Machine Element Design Class

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