Does Developing a Study Guide Impact Test Performance? A Comparison Between Unguided and Guided Development of Scientific Writing

The present study asked whether voluntarily developing a study guide for the final exam would be positively related to performance on the exam. It also asked whether the mode of study guide development (instructor-guided or unguided) would differentiate the performance of students who completed this task. In the study, the development of a study guide was one of the many curriculum-related activities that students could carry out in a course taught through instructor-guided inquiry-based learning. Because it was not a compulsory activity, 81% of the students completed it. Among these students, no differences were observed in the final grades of the instructor-guided and unguided conditions. However, across all participants, completing the study guide was linked to higher class participation and class grades. These findings suggest that participation in co-curricular activities is a reflection of engagement and desirable performance outcomes.