Comparing and contrasting within diagrams: An effective study strategy

Abstract

The study strategy of comparing-and-contrasting has been well validated for learning from text, but not from diagrams. As part of a semester-long study strategies intervention for undergraduate biology students, we created 4 short instructional videos demonstrating the strategy of comparing-and-contrasting within diagrams (CC DIA) and delivered these just before the first course exam. We hypothesized that this strategy would help students develop a deeper comprehension of the instructed biology content. Participants were 128 undergraduates in a 2nd semester introductory (molecular and cellular) biology course, who participated in exchange for extra course credit. Students who accessed our videos scored a significant 5.5% points higher on the first exam of the semester, compared to students in other conditions or non-viewers (d =.35). Our brief (approx. 10 min per week × 4 weeks) instruction in using diagrams to learn biology yielded significant gains in undergraduate achievement.