Web site logical path: [www.psy.gla.ac.uk] [~steve] [talks] [this page]
Title: Feedback calendars, and two other approaches to
improving the value of feedback to students Slides:
PDF
Feedback calendars help move feedback USE into focus for both staff and
students. They are, administratively, a simple, cheap and sustainable
device that publishes to the students on each course not just when their work
must be handed in, but when it will be returned and with what types of
feedback. With respect to students, the hope is that this will make students
more aware of the feedback they get. In fact students do not usually get any
statement from staff about what feedback is for or how it could be useful.
At the least, feedback calendars show that staff consider it an important part
of the course. They may also tend to promote a more active approach to
feedback and doing something with it. (This could be complemented e.g. by
using elective feedback (having students attach questions for the marker to
their work).) With respect to staff, the hope is that listing the feedback
explicitly and in one place will naturally prompt reflection on this (costly)
aspect of course design and delivery.
The columns / prompts, either in their own or other courses' calendars,
could prompt consideration of various facets of feedback. For example: is
the feedback (or should it be) written or oral? From staff or from fellow
students or both? Discussed or just "delivered" like a one-way missile? How
many words? On what following occasion, and how, could this feedback
possibly be acted on?
For written feedback comments, e.g. on essays, I've found that a simple
prompting exercise
seems to make a big difference to whether the work I put into creating the
feedback actually has any effect on my students. I'll introduce the exercise
and how it fits into my practice.
I also have some proposals, not yet trialled by me but based on the practice
of an innovative colleague, on how to make marks/grades useful to students:
what I call "2D feedback"
with both ipsative and normative elements (learn the jargon and impress your
colleagues!).
Web site logical path:
[www.psy.gla.ac.uk]
[~steve]
[talks]
[this page]
Date/time: Wednesday 26 Sept 2012.
Session: 12:00 - 2:30pm My talk: 1-2pm
Occasion:
Place: The Britannia building? The William Harley building?
Glasgow Caledonian University .
How to get there:
to GCU.
Campus map
Presenter
Steve Draper,
School of Psychology,
University of Glasgow.
Handout:
PDF file
Related material:
Abstract
The slogan of this talk is that:
"There is no point in giving feedback to a learner unless the learner acts on
it: does something concrete and differently because of it."
Three kinds of intervention will be discussed relating to this.
In order to obtain further information about the occasion, contact
Lesley McAleavy (Lesley.McAleavy AT gcu.ac.uk)
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