How Expectation of Questioning Method Affects Undergraduates' Preparation for Class

Abstract Results of this experimental study indicated that undergraduates who expected their instructor to call on them, at random, to answer questions during class (a) completed more assigned readings before class, (b) recalled more information from these readings, and (c) demonstrated greater confidence in their reading recall than did classmates who expected their instructor to use voluntary oral questioning. These results suggest that college instructors who wish to increase undergraduates' preparation for class should carefully assess and select in-class questioning methods to ensure student accountability. Instructors of research methods or statistics can use this experiment as a simulation when teaching students about basic research designs, descriptive statistics, and inferential statistics.