Elliot Berkman, PhD, is a Professor of Psychology at the University of Oregon, Divisional Associate Dean of the Natural Sciences, Co-Director of the Center for Translational Neuroscience, and faculty in The Ballmer Institute for Children’s Behavioral Health.

As instructors, we want to help our students overcome challenging concepts, engage deeply with material, and build a habit of scientific thinking that extends beyond the classroom. But even with the best planning, it’s hard to know where students are struggling until after an exam or an assignment has been graded. Norton’s adaptive learning tool, InQuizitive, addresses this challenge by providing real-time insights into student learning to help instructors adjust their teaching on the fly. 

InQuizitive is a formative assessment tool that offers students low-stakes, personalized feedback on their understanding of course material. And InQuizitive’s benefits extend beyond student learning—data pulled from InQuizitive has changed the way I teach. It helps me see where my students are excelling, where they are struggling, and how I can refine my lectures and review sessions to maximize learning outcomes. 

The Science Behind Why InQuizitive Works 

Many students believe that studying means rereading their notes or highlighting their textbooks, but research in cognitive psychology tells a different story. Retrieval practice—actively recalling information—strengthens learning far more than passive review. For example, work by Roediger and Karpicke (2006) on the testing effect shows that repeated retrieval enhances long-term retention, especially when spaced over time. 

This is exactly what InQuizitive provides. By encouraging students to engage in repeated, low-stakes retrieval, InQuizitive aligns with best practices in learning science. The platform not only helps students strengthen their understanding through active recall, but it also spaces out practice over time, reinforcing concepts more effectively than traditional study methods. Importantly, it provides immediate, targeted feedback so students can learn from their mistakes right away, rather than waiting for an exam to reveal their misunderstandings. 

Students don’t always recognize the value of this approach at first. That’s why I try to make my strategy explicit at the beginning of each course, particularly when I teach introductory psychology. I tell my students that InQuizitive isn’t just a set of quizzes—it’s designed based on the science of learning. I explain that practicing retrieval in this structured way will not only help them perform better on exams but also deepen their understanding of psychology. Once they start using it, they begin to see the benefits for themselves. 

How I Use InQuizitive Reports to Improve My Teaching 

One of the most powerful aspects of InQuizitive is the real-time reporting it provides. As an instructor, I can track student engagement—seeing who is completing assignments and how much time they’re spending. I can examine class-level performance, which helps me identify which concepts are particularly challenging across the group, and I can drill down to individual student data to offer personalized feedback. 

The class-level reports have become an essential part of how I prepare for exam review sessions. Rather than relying on intuition or waiting for students to bring up their concerns, I use InQuizitive data to pinpoint which topics need more attention. For example, the last time I taught introductory psychology, I noticed that my students were struggling with distinguishing cognitive dissonance from self-perception theory. There is a subtle but important conceptual difference, and the InQuizitive reports made it clear that many students were answering these questions incorrectly. 

Because of this, I adjusted my exam review strategy. Instead of treating the session as a broad Q&A, I dedicated extra time to reinforcing the distinction between these terms. I used new examples, broke down the key differences in more detail, and encouraged interactive discussion to ensure students were engaging with the material. When I graded the exams, the results were clear: nearly every student retained the key distinction between the self-perception theory and cognitive dissonance. Had I not checked the InQuizitive data, I might not have realized that this was a problem area, and many students might have struggled unnecessarily. 

The Broader Benefits: Modeling Data-Driven Teaching 

I like to geek out about data, and I try to spread my data-joy to my students. But this practice is more than just indoctrinating students into a nerdy hobby—data-driven decision-making is one of the core principles of psychological science and applicable to many courses outside of psychology. InQuizitive affords me the opportunity to model this kind of decision-making for my students and teaching assistants. I make a point of telling students that I use InQuizitive data not just to assess them, but to improve my own teaching. When students see that I’m using real data to refine my course, they become more engaged in the process. They also begin to appreciate that using data to improve performance isn’t just something scientists do—it’s something they can apply in their own lives as well. 

And they value it. At the end of each term, students frequently mention in their course evaluations that they appreciate the opportunity to practice with exam-style questions and receive targeted, low-stakes feedback. Many say that InQuizitive helped them feel more confident going into exams because they knew exactly where to focus their studying. 

Advice for Instructors: Making the Most of InQuizitive 

The principle of transparency is a helpful entry point for instructors considering how to integrate InQuizitive into their teaching. When I explain to students why retrieval practice works and how InQuizitive supports this process, they engage more fully with the platform. Instead of viewing it as just another quiz, they see it as an opportunity to improve. 

I also encourage instructors to use InQuizitive reports as a guide to refine their teaching. Checking class-level trends before exams or major assignments makes it much easier to identify which concepts need reinforcement. Instead of spending equal time on every topic, I focus my efforts on where they are needed most. The ability to adapt in real time is one of the biggest advantages of using this tool. 

I also remind students that InQuizitive is not just about earning a grade—it’s about learning more effectively. I encourage them to reflect on their performance, use the feedback they receive, and focus their studying accordingly. The students who embrace this approach not only perform better but also gain a deeper appreciation for how psychological science can be applied to their own learning. 

Final Thoughts 

InQuizitive has become an invaluable tool in my teaching, not just for what it offers students, but for what it offers me. It helps me be a more effective and efficient instructor by providing detailed information about student learning that allows me to adapt my instruction in targeted ways. In the end, the best teaching is responsive teaching—and InQuizitive helps make that possible. 

Learn more about using InQuizitive in your course here. 

MEET THE AUTHOR