COLLEGE-STUDENTS BELIEFS ABOUT EXAM PREPARATION

The goal of this research was to detail college students' beliefs abou t the examinations they face. We interviewed those closest to the exam preparation process, those who make the decisions about when, how, an d what to study, college students themselves. Students responded to pr ogressively more focussed questions. The conclusions that emerged from several rounds of questioning were checked with a new sample of stude nts. What emerged was a complex set of beliefs about the examination p reparation process. The students expressed beliefs about four aspects of exam preparation: (a) motivations to study for exams, (b) strategie s for exam preparation, (c) affect about exam preparation, and (d) eff ects of external factors on study (e.g., instructors, previous exam ex periences, social environment, physical environment, and content that is to be studied). (C) 1997 Academic Press.