Relationship between cognitive preferences and achievement in chemistry

In this report the relationships between cognitive preferences and patterns of achievement in chemistry for grade 12 students in Australia are investigated. The results of the study are consistent with the following two general propostions: Students who develop the cognitive preferences consistent with those implied or stressed by the Higher School Certificate chemistry course tend to perform better on an end‐of‐course achievement examination than do students whose cognitive preferences are not consis tent with these implied preferences. Higher cognitive preference for a particular preference is positively correlated with performance on the sorts of cognitive tasks implied in that preference.