Participation strategies and student performance: An undergraduate health science retrospective study.

Objective: This research explores participatory evidence-based teaching methods in a health science course to see if a relationship emerged between the level of student participation and course performance, the type of participation and course performance, or the amount of participation and course performance and level of demonstrated learning.

Methods: Level of student participation was dichotomous (100% or <100%), and differences between groups on a knowledge test were compared using an unpaired t test. Type of participation was also dichotomous (in class or out), and differences in course performance on the knowledge test were compared using the unpaired t test. Amount of participation and course performance and level of demonstrated learning were also tested after the knowledge test was measured using a matrix based upon Bloom's taxonomy.

Results: Students who participated 100% of the time scored 6% higher on average than students with less than 100% participation (t[183] = 3.55, p = .0005, d = 0.52). There was no difference between groups when assessing for differences in course performance by type of participation. Students with 100% participation scored higher on the short answer question section of the examination (t[183] = 4.58, p = .0001, d = 0.68), but there was no difference on the multiple choice question part of the examination.

Conclusion: Full participation in the course was related to higher examination scores and higher scores on examination questions assessing higher levels in the cognitive domain.