e-Exercises Application of a University-Level Statistics Course – Development and Evaluation

This article describes the development and evaluation of an e-exercise application (eISTAT) created for an introductory statistics course at the Turku School of Economics, Finland. Automatically generated exercises with instant feedback were programmed by the course instructor within an existing learning environment (ViLLE). Two survey datasets ( n 11 = 98 ; n 12 = 76 ) indicated that the application supported students’ learning. Exercise and exam data ( n 21 = 487 ; n 22 = 305 ) were used to assess the usage of the e-application and course outcomes. Students who used the e-learning application achieved higher exam grades. The challenges of development, alongside the benefits and potential risks, are discussed from the instructor's perspective. The system provided an immediate reduction in workload, albeit with certain risks associated with its development by a single instructor. Finally, a concept for a future e-exercise application is proposed.