How do Students Learn Neuropsychology

Effectively?
2011-2012 Faculty Learning Community: Closing the Loop
Traditional in-class tests are not
necessarily the best measures of
Student Learning Outcomes (SLO)
(Reed, 2007). To address this
limitation, this study will explore
alternative methods of assessing SLO
#4: Knowledge and Inquiry and
assess the effectiveness of various
teaching strategies employed in
Neuropsychology (PSY 424), an
upper-level undergraduate course
that
explores
the
functional
organization of the human brain and
its relationship to behavior. Students
are expected to learn theoretical
frameworks,
neuroanatomy,
neuropsychological concepts, and
current
methodologies
used
to
Methods
understand the complex relationship
Pre/Postbrain
Test:and
Fourteen
open-ended
between
behavior.
questions were given to students
(n=9) at the beginning (Pre-test) and
end (Post-test) of the Spring 2012
semester. These short-answer and
fill-in-the-blank items were randomly
selected from class exams to
measure overall gains in knowledge
of random concepts of neuroanatomy
and neuropsychology.
Free-Recall: Administered in the
middle of the semester, students
(n=8) were asked to write down
every terminology or concept they
have learned thus far in class.
Responses were coded by an
assistant
and
organized
into
commonly learned items.
Methods of Teaching Evaluation:
At the end of the semester, students

Daniel Koo, PhD (Department of Psychology)

Results
Pre-/Post-Test

Methods of Teaching Evaluation

At the beginning of the semester, nine students averaged 17%

correct on the pre-test. At the end of the semester, the same
students averaged 47% correct on the post-test. Eight out of
nine students showed marked improvements of 27% or more
with one 0.7
student (#3) showing a 3% increase.

Instructors explanations in ASL

during lectures and Interactive
Q&As were rated among the most
teaching effective methods by
students. Also, students rated their
own Class Presentations on a
chapter module as a highly effective
teaching tool (2.8 out of 3.0) which
supports an old adage, To teach is
to learn twice. Contrary to previous
assumptions, students gave less
than favorable ratings to novel
instructional methods such as Brain
Coloring
Books
and
Test-error
corrections. Finally, ASL-based, takehome tests were deemed more
effective Ratings
than English-based,
inStudents
of Teaching Methods
class
tests,
Question
Itemslargely because
Average a
number of them felt the
English
Scores
out
tests were too specific ofor5.0too
tricky.
Instructors Explanations

0.6
0.5

Scores

Introduction

PreTest

0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

7.0

8.0

9.0

Students

Free-Recall Exercise
Eight students recalled an average of 15.89 (SD=4.68) distinct
items. Concepts or vocabulary items that have 4 or more
common responses
are listed below.
Glia Cells
EEG Technology
fMRI Technology
Gray vs White Matter
Action Potential
Anterior/Posterior/Ventral/Dorsal
Gender Differences in Brain size
4 Cortical Lobes
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
Synapses (Pre/Post)
Dendrites
Depression
Myelins
2 Types of Strokes
Sperry's Newt Experiment
0

2
3
4
5
No. of Common Responses

Discussion

4.6
in ASL during Lectures
Interactive Q & As in
4.6
Class
ASL-Based Tests
4.2
Printed Information on
4.1
PPs
Summary Papers
3.6
Live Action
3.6
Demonstrations
Brain Coloring Books
3.4
English-Based
Tests
3.3
* 3-point scale used (Not Effective, Somewhat Effective,
Effective)
Correct-Your-Test-Errors
3.3
Class Presentations on
2.8 out of
Chapter Modules*
3.0

The use of multiple assessment techniques can give instructors much broader insight into
how much knowledge students gain compared to traditional multiple-choice tests where
students often study to the test and do not really learn. For instance, a free-recall exercise
can qualitatively inform instructors what content material is actually being retained by
students. Instructors can then use this information in conjunction with student evaluations of
teaching methods to meet critical course objectives and optimize Student Learning
Outcomes. For example, it will be interesting to see if most commonly recalled materials
were from English- or ASL-based tests.