ERIC Number: EJ1013609
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013
Pages: 7
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0965-948X
EISSN: N/A
Understanding Course Content through Letter Writing: Do Informal Writing Assignments Improve Grades?
Bersamin, Melina; Zamboanga, Byron L.; Orsak-Neff, Natalie
Psychology Teaching Review, v19 n1 p50-56 Spr 2013
Using an experimental study design (N = 41), we examined whether participation in an informal writing assignment, specifically writing a letter to a friend about course content, improved exam scores in an undergraduate child development course. Findings indicated that participating in the writing assignment significantly improved scores on an exam which included both a multiple-choice component and an essay. No effect emerged for a quiz that included only multiple-choice questions. These findings indicate that writing assignments that require students to summarise and paraphrase newly-learned material may improve performance on exams that have a written component to them. (Contains 3 tables.)
Descriptors: Letters (Correspondence), Course Content, Assignments, Writing Instruction, Experimental Groups, Scores, Child Development, Undergraduate Students, Multiple Choice Tests, Essay Tests, Teaching Methods, Instructional Effectiveness, Pretests Posttests
British Psychological Society, Division for Teachers & Researchers in Psychology. St Andrews House, 48 Princess Road East, Leicester, LE1 7DR, UK. Tel: +44-1162-529551; Fax: +44-1162-271314; e-mail: directmail@bps.org.uk; Web site: http://www.bps.org.uk/ptr
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: California
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A