EFFECT OF PRACTICE TESTS ON OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE IN A CONSTRUCTION SCIENCE COURSE Ifte Choudhury 1 1 Department of Construction Science, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA ABSTRACT Literature indicates that when students who take optional practice tests, they perform better in mandatory course exams than those who do not take advantage of the practice tests. The purpose of this study is to find out whether this variable makes a difference in overall student performance in an Environmental Control Systems course in Construction Science offered by the author. The idea of optional practice tests had been introduced by the author in Fall 2011. There are 105 students in two sections of the course. Data was collected throughout the semester. The variable was tested along with other factors that may have an effect on overall student performance in a course, such as home work performance, quiz performance, and gender. Multiple linear regression technique was used to perform the analysis. The findings of the study indicate that optional practice tests do have a positive effect on student performance in formal course assessment. Keywords: Construction Science, Environmental Control Systems, Practice Tests, Student Engagement. INTRODUCTION Student engagement is an important aspect of learning process in an academic setting. It occurs when the learners take responsibility for their learning rather than continuing to be passive and waiting to be spoon-fed by the instructor. Increasing student engagement in classroom setting is gradually becoming important (Deeter, 2008). Student engagement with the course material is of utmost importance irrespective of the method of delivery of instruction (Lockyer et al. 2001). In order to enhance student engagement with course materials, the author introduced online practice tests for a course in an Environmental Control Systems at an undergraduate level. The tests were voluntary. The students who took these tests received immediate feedback. The purpose of this study was to determine whether student performance at an undergraduate level is affected by the optional practice tests. The measure of student performance was the sum of a student’s scores in mandatory tests. 1 i-choudhury@tamu.edu RICS COBRA 2012 10-13 September 2012, Las Vegas, Nevada USA _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 704