Repeated quizzing of building block mathematics concepts to improve grades in economics

Modern economics courses require a high level of mathematical proficiency, and a lack of such proficiency may reduce the performance of economics students or lead students to avoid economics courses altogether. In the experiment described in this study, we sought to improve economics students’ mathematical skills, and in turn their grades, by repeatedly quizzing them on building block concepts. We analysed data from four semesters of a first-year mathematics course. In the earlier two semesters, under an old quizzing approach, students were quizzed five times, but no concept appeared on more than one quiz. In the last two semesters, under the new quizzing approach, important basic concepts appearedrepeatedly across several quizzes. Results showed that performance with repeated concepts improved across quizzes and the new quizzing approach was associated with slightly higher final exam scores. Scores on the mid-semester exams, which occurred before most quizzes, were not consistently associated with the quizzing approach (and therefore the semesters), helping to rule out cohort effects and some other potential alternative explanations for the improvement in final exam scores.