Test Corrections Appear To Benefit Lower-Achieving Students in an Introduction to Biology Major Course: Results of a Single-Site, One-Semester Study

Student-performed assessment correction is a well-established practice in the field of teaching and learning. This practice engages students in the feedback process and promotes active learning, which may be particularly important when serving underrepresented minority students. There is a dearth of research into the role of assessment correction in student learning outcomes (SLOs) in science courses, particularly at minority-serving institutions. Students at a Native American-serving, primarily undergraduate rural institution were allowed to perform test corrections for each of the three exams given during the term in an undergraduate introductory biology course. Students received the graded test back and were given 1 week to answer the following questions: what was your original answer, why did you choose that answer/what were you thinking at the time, why is the answer wrong, what is the correct answer, why is it the correct answer, and what is your source of reference if different from the textbook? The students were administered a comprehensive final exam at the end of the course that determined the number of SLOs passed. A Pearson correlation and a bivariate regression analysis were performed to determine if the number of test corrections performed (TC) during the term influenced the number of SLOs passed for all students, lower-achieving students, and higher-achieving students in the study. The TC correlated with, and could predict, SLOs passed for lower-achieving students only. This preliminary analysis suggests that performing test corrections may benefit lower-achieving students.