Enhancing Feedback Understanding for Students: Strategies and Suggestions

1. Making written feedback more effective Tutors: providing feedback how can we make it easier for students to understand our comments and act on them? Students: using tutor feedback Text what strategies can students use to unpack feedback and take actions to develop skills?

2. What is it like for students when they get their feedback? • Imagine you are a student and open the package in front of you. • Take out form A and read the feedback: • What do you think you could do with the feedback? • Set out the actions you might take.

4. How can we help students get more out of feedback? • Suggestions?

5. How can we help students get more out of feedback? • In the way we provide feedback • In helping students unpack feedback • In helping students take action on feedback

6. How can we help students get more out of feedback?

7. What are the purposes of feedback? • List the four main purposes.

8. Compare your purposes with these – do you agree with that purpose or not? • to justify the mark awarded; • to show how far learning outcomes have been achieved; • to comment on the develop of subject academic literacy (planning, style, referencing); • to motivate the student by praising achievements • to identify areas that the student needs to develop; • to suggest resources for the development of student learning; • to explain why aspects are correct and worthy of praise; • to explain why aspects are not appropriate and show what would be an appropriate expression; • to identify the gap between current performance and desired performance at that level of study.

9. The ASK Approach Attitudes- change in attitude to prevent early closure on feedback Strategies- introduction of range of strategies for learning Knowledge- both cognitive and practical to guide student learning in relation to feedback.

10. • ATTITUDE: Non-collection/ not following up advice We need to help students rethink their belief in assignment/learning closure Build into module design the need to receive and act on feedback, and ensure students are rewarded for doing so. • STRATEGIES (recognition of variety of learning styles/ needs): • electronic links: learning materials and resources • academic study skills feedback tutorials • self-and peer-assessment • subject feedback tutorials (formative and summative) • workshops (skills and developmental) • KNOWLEDGE (cognitive and practical): Understanding the need to act on feedback. Knowing how to act on feedback. Knowing that the development of skills is a personal investment of time. Acting – taking practical steps beyond merely acknowledging the need to or intentions to.

11. Activity: Be prepared – preparing students for your feedback • How does your subject and module literature guide students on how to use tutor feedback? • Do they know what kind of feedback to expect? • Do they know what to do with your feedback? • Do you provide suggestionsfor tutorial, literature or electronic support?

13. Tutors: providing feedback • to help students differentiate between feedback on work, • and feedforward for future learning - help students move from being passive recipient of feedback - to help students see benefit of feedforward for developing skills - to help students see how to work on the feedback in specific ways - to motivate students by providing them with advice to improve their learning at the time they receive the feedback

14. Tutors: providing feedback • to provide students with a starting point • With guidance on where to make such a start • To help students take control of the feedback by recording their intentions

15. Tutors: providing feedback Try this tutorial on Structuring an argument http://www.monash.edu.au/lls/llonline/writing/arts/english/2.2.xml • Stephani, 1998 • students want information on How to develop their work. • Students often fail to follow up tutor feedback because they don’t know what to do with it (Burke 2007). • focus on ‘pedagogic role’ of written feedback, can ‘facilitate learning’ by making it easy for students to follow-up feedback advice • This process can help to make transparent the ‘academic conventions’ that tutors may take for granted (Lillis & Turner, 2001: 66). • use of subject specific examples helps students ‘see’ how skills requirements for planning, structuring and referencing look within their own discipline.

16. Tutors: providing feedback • Students are provided with a hyperlink to a webfolio • this reminds students of the assessed task • provides exemplars of student work on the specific task • breaks down the structure of the feedback form • provides guidance on referencing • short examples to illustrate good practice Consult the linked webfolio for initial guidance and illustrations of good practice: http://pebblepad.wlv.ac.uk/webfolio.aspx?webfolioid= 966245 You can follow up this feedback by arranging a one-to-one session with a Skills Tutor in The Student Support Office MC238, Tel: 01902 323365)

17. Students: using tutor feedback 17

18. Students: using tutor feedback • use of template can empower student • preparation of actual questions • moves through stages

19. Tutors: providing feedback • Template provides a way of structuring and recording tutorials • The learning need identified in the essay feedback is identified • discussion with student indicates their understanding of this learning need • follow-up • information: • online tutorials: • Exemplars: • Hyperlink added • form emailed. 19

21. Neville, C. (2009) How to Improve your assignment results. McGraw-Hill. You have not answered the question. Your work is more descriptive than critical. You did not tell me anything new. Your English is weak; it was difficult to follow your arguments http://books.google.com/books?id=RAXyNwAACAAJ&dq=neville+How+to+Improve+Your+Assignment+Results&hl=en&ei=mprOTJv5Ls6Oswb96t2WCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CDIQ6AEwAA

22. ‘This exercise was interesting and helpful to complete, since I misunderstood some feedback I received and if I did not complete this exercise, I would have continued doing what I was, which would have had a negative impact on my work.’ ‘I realize that in order to develop my study skills I have to make an effort. I need to research these topics in the same way I do other aspects of my work.’