7 Common Questions asked about RATs in TBL

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Readiness Assurance Tests (RATs) are integral to Team-based Learning (TBL). RATs help determine whether students are ready for the problem-solving application activities after their initial preparation.

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There are two parts to the RAT – the individual RAT (IRAT) and the team RAT (TRAT). The IRAT reveals individual preparation, while the TRAT promotes collaborate learning as students discuss their answers to reach a consensus.

Here are six questions commonly asked about RATs in TBL:

  1. Does IRAT and TRAT consist of the same questions?
    Yes, IRAT and TRAT consist of the same questions. When students attempt the same questions individually and then in their teams, it promotes deeper processing as students debate and discuss their answers before they reach a consensus. Fox, Gaebelein and Gopalan (2013) had conducted a study where they tested two groups of students – the first group had completed both IRAT and TRAT, while the second group only completed the TRAT. The first group of students had a higher TRAT score and took less time to complete the test as compared to the second group of students. Their study proves that being exposed to the same questions multiple times helped students arrive at the correct answers quickly and improve team scores. To illustrate further, the average student score is typically 65% to 75% on the IRAT and 95% on the TRAT (Sibley, 2018).
  2. Are RATs done sequentially?
    Yes, RATs are done sequentially. Students attempt the IRAT after completing their prework, and then immediately attempt the TRAT with their teams afterwards. By following the sequential process, students are able to reflect on the gaps in their understanding of the prework and are able to learn from their peers. Working in a team also allows students to develop problem-solving skills. The immediate feedback provided during TRAT helps students to improve their overall learning.

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  1. How much class time should be spent on RATs?
    Instructors are advised to cater around 30 to 45 minutes for students to complete both IRAT and TRAT and for instructors to debrief. During the TBL-styled online workshops that we conduct, we provide 90 seconds (one and a half minutes) per question on the IRAT and 120 seconds (two minutes) per question on the TRAT. Additionally, educators often look at historical data to adjust timings for RATs. To find out how you can view the average time taken by the class to complete IRAT and TRAT on InteDashboard, refer to our guide here. Most instructors are strict with their timings so that the RATs challenge the students and train them to manage their time more efficiently. If there are students with disabilities, instructors may also consider providing them with extra time to complete the IRAT.

  2. How many questions should there be on RATs?
    Most instructors prepare seven to ten questions on RATs. However, some courses might require more questions – it is up to the instructor to decide what would work best for his or her class.

  3. What should the difficulty level be for RATs?
    The difficulty level for the RATs should be set up based on class level. For example, for first-year students’ introductory courses, RATs should be set at an easy-medium difficulty level. As they progress in the course, the level of difficulty should increase. The RATs should prepare students for the application exercises that follow. Additionally, some instructors like to add one to three questions with answers that are debatable to increase class engagement.

  4. Should IRATs and TRATs be graded?
    Yes, instructors are advised to grade the IRATs and TRATs. The scores on both tests should count toward students’ final grade. When students are credited for completing the tests, they would feel encouraged to better prepare for the TBL activities (Behling, Carrasco, and Lopez, 2019). RATs typically make up 15 to 20% of the total grade – this percentage might change depending on the course context and intended learning outcomes.

Do you have any other questions about Readiness Assurance Test that you would like to clarify? Put them in the comments below and we will respond to them. :wink:

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Hello Everyone,
is there any guideline in the TBL literature about the relative weight toward the grade of iRATs vs tRATs. I usually make tRATs weight less. Any suggestions?

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I don’t know of any literature on that precise topic, but I’m interested if others do. I make my iRATs and tRATs the same weight. Their TBL score is 20% of my students’ overall grade: the iRAT is 8% and the tRAT is 8% and the peer review is 4%.

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I have created something a little different to encourage both preparation and collaboration. TBL counts for 30% of their overall grade. I have the following to three: IRAT, TRAT, and a PRAT. The entire TBL is worth 50 points. The IRAT and TRAT are as described in the literature. IRAT counts for 2x (or 20 pts), the TRAT counts for 1x (10 points). This encourages adequate prework prep. TRAT is designed to generate discussion and clarification, but often has one or two people who studied and the rest try to ride on the coattails of those who studied. Some (often many) students would take the hit on the IRAT and hope that their team did well enough to give them a barely passing grade. In response to this, I developed a PRAT (Post) as another layer of individual responsibility. That means that during the collaboration period of the TRAT as well as the application batch, it allows students who don’t have understanding of certain concepts to get clarification from peers on those concepts. That way, they aren’t rewarded for riding it out and they have the opportunity to collaborate and discuss material that was unclear. I found this element encouraged more discussion, rather than just picking the right answer during the TRAT. The PRAT counts 2x or 20 points). I usually see an improvement from the IRAT to the PRAT. I hope this helps. The only downside for that is that there’s a limited amount of time in class when I can do this and it doesn’t leave a lot of extra time for discussion. I’ve started breaking it up into two different classes so I don’t lose value in the application batch collaborative discussion. I teach human gross anatomy, human physiology, as well as combined A & P for undergraduate students of medical sciences.

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I have the iRATs worth the same as the combination of tRAT and Application questions. Seems to work well for personal and group accountability

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I weigh my IRATs and TRATs the same as sharilyn_rennie. I’m really interested in the PRAT. So, to understand you correctly, do students take the IRAT, then the TRAT, and then the PRAT? Does the PRAT have the same set of questions as the IRAT and TRAT?

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Hi @TBLZorro67 et al

Here is one paper to describe how we’ve done it. I’m not sure what your student make-up is – in our study, we were working with pharmacy students as opposed to undergraduate students. I feel like that changes the dynamic some (primarily, I think there are key motivational differences…)

https://www.ajpe.org/article/S0002-9459(24)00544-8/abstract

Currently, I implement a Pass/Fail threshold for the iRATs. Student have to score a combined average on the iRAT/tRAT for the semester of at least 80%. While students may be able to lean on their team some (team average is usually 95%), there is enough incentive for them to prepare individually ahead of time so that they don’t get a 60% and pull their average down below the passing point.

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@mkillian
I’ve designed the PRAT to have similar questions, but not the exact same questions. I use the same high-yield concepts. What I want to see happen, is students will ask for clarification during the TRAT and the application batch, rather than check out. Students will go through the usual sequence -IRAT, TRAT, App Batch, the PRAT as the last thing to close out the session.