Do Students Prefer Puzzles To Conventional Assessment Methods?

The application of crossword puzzles in various fields of education has been noticed since their advent in 1913. Numerous research studies have reported benefits accruing from the application of puzzles including increased students’ interests in course work, better students’ grades, and improved critical thinking by students. Even though there has been so much research on the use and benefits of puzzles in academia little research has been done to determine what students feel about them. This research paper is a contribution in closing this gap by establishing whether students prefer crossword puzzles to conventional assessment methods and also whether their preferred method of assessment translate to better performance. A group of students, which were registered for a systems analysis module, were surveyed to determine their preferences regarding crossword puzzles. The results show that the majority of students prefer crossword puzzles over conventional assessment methods. Students gave various reasons for choosing crossword puzzles and these included puzzles being ‘easy’. The findings of this study confirm previous results of similar previous studies. On the other hand, the results of this study also indicate no significant difference in performance between the two student groups, namely, those who prefer crossword puzzles and those who do not.