Relationship between examination score and homework completion time for on-demand classes among pharmacy students during COVID-19

Abstract

Objective: During the Covid-19 pandemic, there was a shift from face-to-face to online lectures. This study investigated the relationship between examination scores and the submissions of lecture-related homework assignments to evaluate student time management. Methods: The 139 participants were third-year pharmacy students who received seven Pharmacotherapeutics II lectures on-demand from September to November 2020. They were classified into three groups based on the time of assignment submission as a submission on the day of lecture (“early” n = 42), up to the day before the deadline (“intermediate” n = 58), and on the deadline day (“late” n = 39). Spearman’s rank correlation coefficients and multivariate regression analysis were used to determine the influence of homework submission times on examination scores. Results: The analysis showed that examination scores were negatively impacted by late submission. Students who submitted their assignments soon after the lectures had higher exam scores, while those who submitted them later had lower scores. Conclusion: The results suggested that some pharmacy students may have poor time management and a tendency toward academic procrastination with on-demand classes, directly affecting their exam scores. Therefore, faculty must communicate with online students about time management in submitting homework assignments soon after lectures and monitor student progress throughout the course.