Should Students or Instructors Provide Opportunities for Testing and Why?: A Mixed Methods Approach

The testing effect phenomenon occurs when repeated retrieval practice leads to better long-term retention of information compared to repeated re-studying of material, but students tend to prefer repeated studying over testing themselves (Karpicke et al., 2009). We aimed to assess students' preference for who should implement testing -- instructors or students -- and determine the basis of their response. Our sample consisted of 177 undergraduate students who completed an online survey. Our results indicated that the majority of respondents felt that instructors should be responsible for providing testing opportunities (n = 108). Our qualitative analysis revealed that participants preferred instructors because of beliefs that 1) the instructors were the experts, and 2) teachers were the ones who create exams. When participants responded that students should provide their own testing opportunities, they indicated that students should be proactive in their own learning. Overall, our results suggest that instructors may want to consider implementing testing in their classes to aid learning.