Research adventures in university teaching : eighteen investigations regarding college and university problems / by Sidney L. Pressey [and others].

Date:
[1927], ©1927
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Licence: In copyright

Credit: Research adventures in university teaching : eighteen investigations regarding college and university problems / by Sidney L. Pressey [and others]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    These responses from the students (taken at their face value) may, of course, be interpreted as meaning either that skill in written ex- pression conduces to clear thinking and good marks, or that the greater ease of expression of good students is a product of more adequate information regarding topics written about. The next matter touched upon was the extent to which students applied facts learned in class and thought over classwork outside of class. Briefly it may be said that 21 of the ‘‘A’’ students, in contrast to only 6 of the ‘‘E’’ students, indicated that they applied material acquired in class to topics met outside that class. And it may be added that examples of such application, and other indirect evidence, gave support to these figures. An attempt was now made to discover factors other than study method that were related to academic success. A general statement from the students regarding their health and general physical con- dition was first obtained. Of the ‘‘A’’ students, 23 reported good health; one of the ‘‘ A’’ students had trouble with his eyes and one did not hear well. In contrast, only 13 ‘‘E’’ students reported themselves in good physical condition, and a variety of more or less serious ills were mentioned. Four had eye trouble, three were ‘tired all the time,’’ three had goitres, and two had diseased tonsils and enlarged adenoids. Of course, the poor students may be tempted to report physical trouble as excuses for poor work; or the poor work may cause hypochondria. From observation of the stu- dents the interviewer was inclined to believe that the ‘‘A’’ students were, as a group, in better physical condition than the ‘‘E”’ students. Inquiry as to number and type of extra-curricular activities de- veloped no differences between the two groups. However, ten of the ‘‘B’’ students were working for part or all of their college expenses, while only three of the ‘‘A’’ students were so working. AN INVESTIGATION BY A Group METHOD OF THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN Goop AND PooR STUDENTS It was found desirable, in the total effort for information re- garding effective study methods and related factors affecting aca- demic success, to obtain somewhat more extensive data about certain topics than was possible by individual methods of inquiry. On the basis of previous work a somewhat elaborate series of questions was therefore formulated, revised, finally cut to a total of 125 objective answer questions, and given to some 250 students in classes in elementary psychology. The nature of the questions will be indi- eated shortly. Marks of these students for the entire previous