Early-Semester Low-Stakes Quizzes in Introductory Accounting: Associations with Student Performance and Engagement

Abstract

This study examined whether participation in an early-semester low-stakes quiz intervention was associated with student performance and engagement in an introductory accounting course. Drawing on theoretical perspectives of retrieval practice, formative assessment, and distributed engagement, the study employed a retrospective quasi-experimental cohort-comparison design using multiple sections of Principles of Accounting I taught before and after implementation of a low-stakes quiz intervention. The final sample included 626 students: 310 in the non-quiz cohort and 316 in the quiz-intervention cohort. Independent-samples analyses indicated that students exposed to the quiz intervention earned significantly higher scores on all three major course examinations and achieved higher final course percentages than students in the non-quiz cohort. It was noticed that the largest performance difference typically happened with the second examination. Within the quiz-intervention cohort, quiz performance was positively associated with examination performance, final course performance, and attendance. Regression analyses further indicated that quiz performance remained a significant predictor of final course performance after accounting for attendance. Although differences in DFW and withdrawal rates did not reach statistical significance, both outcomes favored the quiz-intervention cohort. Collectively, the findings suggest that early-semester low-stakes quizzes may function as learning-oriented instructional structures that support retrieval practice, feedback, self-monitoring, and sustained engagement with course material. Because the intervention required relatively modest implementation effort, and was embedded within existing course activities, it may represent a practical strategy for improving student learning and performance in introductory accounting and other foundational business courses.