How about assigning everyone to study in the library for the first midterm and then have everyone study in the dorm for the second midterm and compare the exam scores of the 2 groups?

What are the 2 biggestproblemswith this design?

Select exactly two, otherwise you won't get credit.

Select all that areProblems.

1. The same group of students would be taking both exams.
2. Difference in Study Environment--There's probably a lower level of noise and other distractions in the library so it's more conducive to studying.
3. Difference in Exam Dates: Maybe one exam was given during a busy time when many students had other exams so you wouldn't be able to tell if a difference in exam scores was due to the stress of other exams or the study location.
4. Difference in Exam Difficulty: One exam may be harder than the other so you wouldn't be able to tell if students did worse because of the study location or because of the difficulty of the exam.
5. Difference in Study Environment--There may be more accessibility to study materials in the library.