Comparative Effectiveness of Rewriting and Electronic Flashcards on Students’ Test Performance: A Pretest-Posttest Experimental Study

Identifying effective study strategies remained a significant concern in education, particularly in improving students’ academic performance and learning outcomes. This study examined the comparative effectiveness of lesson rewriting and electronic flashcards on students’ test performance. Guided by principles from cognitive psychology, the study employed a quantitative pretest-posttest between-subjects experimental design. A total of 30 college students were selected through convenience sampling and were divided into two groups: rewriting and electronic flashcards. Academic performance was measured using standardized pretest and posttest assessments. Descriptive statistics, paired samples t-tests, and independent samples t-tests were utilized to analyze differences within and between groups. Results revealed a statistically significant improvement in the test scores of students who used the rewriting method, indicating meaningful gains in comprehension and retention. In contrast, the electronic flashcards group showed only slight improvement, which was not statistically significant within the intervention period. Furthermore, no statistically significant difference was found between the posttest scores of the two groups, suggesting that both study methods produced comparable learning outcomes under controlled conditions. The findings suggested that rewriting supported deeper cognitive processing through generative learning, while electronic flashcards primarily reinforced retrieval and familiarity with information. The study concluded that both strategies were beneficial depending on the learning objectives and nature of the subject matter. However, the findings should be interpreted cautiously due to the small sample size and short intervention period. The study provided evidence-based insights that might assist students, educators, and educational institutions in selecting appropriate and cognitively engaging study strategies aligned with quality education initiatives.