Use of “reading quizzes” to foster learning: evidence from teaching company law in business programmes

Reading or pre-unit quizzes (PUQs) were designed and implemented in order to enhance the learning experience of undergraduate students registered in a company law course. Each PUQ covered one weekly topic of the course through eight multiple-choice questions that the students had to answer prior to attending the lecture and seminar on that topic. The PUQs were administered in Blackboard and constituted a graded assignment. The students worked on the PUQs on an open-book basis and also benefited from the quiz’s built-in feedback function. Following prior literature, it was expected that through the PUQs the students would complete their pre-class reading and, in so doing, prepare for class and learn better. An e-poll was used to identify and measure the students’ perceptions. Regression analysis was also conducted using data on the students’ grades. The results were consistent with our expectations. Working on the PUQs helped students to better prepare for and understand the lectures. A positive association of PUQ performance with class participation and final exam grades was also identified. Overall, the results suggest that the intended objectives in utilising PUQs were met very satisfactorily although some features of this tool would benefit from improvements.