The effect of a daily quiz (TOPday) on self-confidence, enthusiasm, and test results for biomechanics

Many students in Biomedical Sciences have difficulty understanding biomechanics. In a second-year course, biomechanics is taught in the first week and examined at the end of the fourth week. Knowledge is retained longer if the subject material is repeated. However, how does one encourage students to repeat the subject matter? For this study, we developed ‘two opportunities to practice per day (TOPday)’, consisting of multiple-choice questions on biomechanics with immediate feedback, which were sent via e-mail. We investigated the effect of TOPday on self-confidence, enthusiasm, and test results for biomechanics. All second-year students (n = 95) received a TOPday of biomechanics on every regular course day with increasing difficulty during the course. At the end of the course, a non-anonymous questionnaire was conducted. The students were asked how many TOPday questions they completed (0–6 questions [group A]; 7–18 questions [group B]; 19–24 questions [group C]). Other questions included the appreciation for TOPday, and increase (no/yes) in self-confidence and enthusiasm for biomechanics. Seventy-eight students participated in the examination and completed the questionnaire. The appreciation for TOPday in group A (n = 14), B (n = 23) and C (n = 41) was 7.0 (95 % CI 6.5–7.5), 7.4 (95 % CI 7.0–7.8), and 7.9 (95 % CI 7.6–8.1), respectively (p < 0.01 between A and C).