Percentages of students reporting regular use of self-testing and flashcards, displayed as a function of GPA level. Respondents could select as many strategies as desired

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

A gap in the literature on testing and studying strategies is that other studies fail to analyze if differences in strategy were related to student achievement.   In their paper “Study strategies of college students: Are self-testing and scheduling related to achievement?”, Hartwig and Dunlosky set out to discover if different patterns of study strategies are correlated to student grade point average (GPA).  The two research questions: (1) Are study strategies significant to student achievement? (2) Are there differences in study habits for high vs low achieving students? Hartwig and Dunlosky found that the study habits of self-testing, rereading, and scheduling of study are significantly related to student achievement.  

324 undergraduate students were surveyed about their study habits/practices. The study strategies of self-testing and re-reading were significantly correlated with student GPA.  High performers were less likely to study at later hours than low performers. These low performers were especially driven to use study strategies because of deadlines.  For all students, the strategies of massing contrasted to spacing of study correlated with the use of fewer study strategies.  It is important to note that variance in performance can be accounted for by exogenous factors, such as, motivation, interest, intelligence, environment, or competing demands.  In addition, it is unclear the degree to which one can generalize different course contents and different kinds of tests.  The major finding was self-testing was a relatively popular strategy and was significantly related to student achievement.

 Self-testing is significantly related to student achievement. 


Hartwig, M. K., & Dunlosky, J. (2012). Study strategies of college students: Are self-testing and scheduling related to achievement? Retrieved February 02, 2021, from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22083626/

Study strategies of college students: Are self-testing and scheduling related to achievement?

Percentages of students selecting each response option for how they decide what to 100 study next, as a function of GPA. Respondents could select only one answer that best represented their habits

Figure 3: How do you decide what to study next?

Percentages of students selecting each response option for the reasons one might self-test, displayed as a function of GPA. Respondents could select only one reason that best represented 70 their habits

Figure 2: If you quiz yourself, why do you do so?

Figure 1: Which strategies do you use regularly?

Percentages of students endorsing morning, afternoon, evening, or late-night study 100 times, as a function of GPA. The left panel shows the time of day
studying was typically done 80, and the right panel shows the time of day that respondents believed is 60 (or would be) most effective for study. For each question, respondents could select only one time of day that best represented their habits or beliefs

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