Objectives. To determine how different types of prior knowledge (declarative and procedural) impact student achievement and how prior-knowledge assessment can be used as an instructional design tool. Methods. A questionnaire was developed based on the prior-knowledge model, which distinguishes between declarative and procedural knowledge. One hundred fifteen pharmacy students were tested prior to beginning 4 successive basic science courses and then prior to beginning a pharmaceutical chemistry course. Regression analysis was used to determine which type of knowledge was the best predictor of student achievement. The 4 course instructors were interviewed and their comments analyzed. Results. Prior knowledge from previous courses significantly influenced student achievement. Procedural knowledge was especially related to student achievement. Instructors and students had mainly positive reactions towards the prior-knowledge tests. Conclusions. Students' prior knowledge should be taken into consideration in instructional design and curriculum planning. Furthermore, the results of prior-knowledge assessments may be used as a tool for student support in addressing areas of deficiency.

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The aim of this study was to explore the relationships between prior knowledge, academic selfbeliefs, and previous study success in predicting the achievement of 139 students on a university mathematics course. Structural equation modelling was used to explore the interplay of these variables in predicting student achievement. The results revealed that domain-specific prior knowledge was the strongest predictor of student achievement over and above other variables included in the model and, together with previous study success, explained 55% of the variance. Academic self-beliefs strongly correlated with previous study success and had a strong direct influence on prior knowledge test performance. However, selfbeliefs predicted student achievement only indirectly via prior knowledge. The results imply that both prior knowledge and self-beliefs should be taken into account when considering instructional support issues, because they can provide valuable insights about the future performance of the students.

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