ERIC Number: EJ971849
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012-Aug
Pages: 7
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1041-6080
EISSN: N/A
Test-Taking Strategy as a Mediator between Race and Academic Performance
Dollinger, Stephen J.; Clark, M. H.
Learning and Individual Differences, v22 n4 p511-517 Aug 2012
The issue of race differences in standardized test scores and academic achievement continues to be a vexing one for behavioral scientists and society at large. Ellis and Ryan (2003) suggested that a portion of the cognitive-ability test performance differences between White/Caucasian-American and Black/African-American college students could be attributed to the greater use of ineffective test-taking strategies by the latter group. We replicated and extended their findings by using three outcomes--exam scores in a single academic course, self-reported GPA, and a measure of verbal abilities. Ellis and Ryan reported that the variance in cognitive-ability test performance explained by race dropped by 48% (i.e., from 21% originally to 11%) when controlling for the mediator, ineffective test-taking strategies. Our results were less dramatic, but also indicated that ineffective test-taking strategies accounted for 19% to 25% of the variance originally explained by race. In addition, reminiscent of the disidentification effect, supplementary analyses showed that academic/intellectual self-perceptions correlated with the criterion measures but only for White participants. These results suggest that a portion of the race difference on test scores might be accounted for by test-taking strategies. (Contains 6 tables.)
Descriptors: Grade Point Average, Standardized Tests, Academic Achievement, Verbal Ability, Racial Differences, Cognitive Ability, White Students, African American Students, College Students, Outcomes of Education, Scores, Test Wiseness, Academic Ability, Self Concept, Correlation
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
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Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A