Online study tools: College student preference versus impact on achievement

Forty-eight college students participated in an ABAB analysis; the A condition was online study groups and the B condition was online practice tests. Students prepared for two in-class examinations under the A condition and two in-class examinations under the B condition. Based on Bloom’s taxonomy, all examinations contained items that assessed student mastery of course content in terms of: (1) knowledge, (2) comprehension, (3) application, and (4) synthesis. Ten questionnaire items established that participating students preferred online practice tests over online study groups. Such preference, however, was not significantly related to any measure of academic achievement. While small sample size renders generalization of findings tenuous, the results of the investigation suggest that various online study tools may have differential effectiveness for knowledge, comprehension, application, and synthesis instruction objectives. Although student preference is an important consideration, instructors should select online study tools on the basis of established learning benefits.