When used correctly, access to and usage of previous exams and previous exam questions as a studying tool has been shown to significantly enhance learning outcomes. However, such enhancement is dependent on the way in which such access is utilized.
At the Engineering Faculty of Lund University (LTH), students are regularly provided access to previous exams, but usually, the manner in which these exams are or are not used is left up to the individual students. One avenue of improving learning outcomes could be a more conscious strategy for incorporating previous exams. However, such strategies must cope with existing student strategies and preconceptions about the role of previous exams in the learning environment.
To explore this topic, a survey with third-year chemical engineering students was conducted. The results indicate that the cohort found access to previous exams very important for defining the desired learning outcomes. Furthermore, most students reported using access to final exams mainly as a tool for checking perceived alignment towards the end of the course.
In the light of the strong expectations and large importance accorded by students to access to previous exams, teachers who wish to incorporate them in another way will have to either accommodate existing student strategies or spend significant effort motivating new approaches. However, highlighting the relationship between a given teaching activity and exam performance can, in the light of this, also serve as a strong motivator for deep learning.
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