ulster.ac.uk

Student and staff views about online

assessment and feedback Brian McGowan Ursula Chaney, Briege Lagan, Helen McGarvey, Jerome Marley and Vidar Melby

Summary

What did we do

Why did we do it

How did we do it

What did we find

So what!

What did we do? Aim and objectives

The aim of the study was to evaluate what forms of assignment submission and feedback staff and students perceive most useful.

To achieve this aim the following objectives were set:

• To identify if students and staff favour one system of submission and feedback (if any) above another

• To compare different forms of feedback from the student’s perspective

• To compare different forms of feedback from the lecturer’s perspective

• To determine what students and staff perceive the impact feedback has on learning.

Why did we do it? Opportunity from crisis

Assessment and feedback is key

Feedback performance in NSS showed room for

development

Experience of feedback was variable

Decision to pilot the use of online tools to facilitate

assessment and feedback

Turnitin/Grademark

Why did we do it #2 Some student issues

How did we do it We were trained to use Grademark by ODL

QuickMark Sets

Typing individual comments on student work

Adding general comments and feedback for the entire paper

Audio feedback (max. three mins)

Rubrics

graded document, feedback and rubric are seen together online

can download and print.

How did we do it #2 Methods

An online survey was designed using Qualtrics

Ethical approval was granted by the Ethics Filter Committee of the Institute for Nursing and Healthcare Research

All current pre-registration and post registration students who had submitted a summative assignment in semester one or two of the 2015/2016 academic year were invited to take part. 1

All lecturers who were currently teaching were asked to complete the survey.

1054 were invited to participate.

What did we find Conclusions

Staff and students

experience of using blackboard for

submitting assignments online was positive

It was the most favoured medium for

submitting assignments

Students preferred typed rather than

handwritten feedback

Feedback was regarded as essential for learning

by both staff and students

Not all staff or students were aware of the

online rubric in Blackboard

Both staff and students highlighted

inconsistency among markers

So What! Recommendations; What’s next?

Use online assignment management in all modules

Staff should be facilitated to engage with cpd to provide

them with the relevant knowledge and skills to use

Turnitin and Grademark

Instruction on the use of Blackboard Learn should be

part of student induction

Clear marking criteria contributes to consistency

The use of rubrics needs to be reviewed

Audio feedback should be encouraged

Feedback findings from project to staff and students

Explore the use of e-submission and e-feedback for other forms of student

work such as portfolios

References/further reading

Adcroft, A. (2010) Speaking the same language? Perceptions of feedback amongst academic staff and students in a School of Law. The Law Teacher, 44(3), 250-260.

Higher Education Academy. (2012) A marked improvement: transforming assessment in higher education York: HEA.

Lizzio, A. and Wilson, K. (2008) Feedback on assessment: students’ perception of quality and effectiveness. Assessment and evaluation in Higher Education, 33(3), 263-275.

Muir Gray, J.A. (1997) Evidence-based healthcare: How to make health policy and management decisions. London: Churchill Livingstone.

Nicol, D. (2010) From monologue to dialogue: improving written feedback processes in mass higher education. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 35(5), 501-517.

Parkin, H.J., Hepplestone, S., Holden, G., Irwin, B. and Thorpe, L. (2012) A role for enhancing students engagement with feedback. Assessment and evaluation in Higher Education, 37(8), 963-973.

West, J. and Turner, W. (2015) Enhancing the assessment experience: improving student perceptions, engagement and understanding using online video feedback. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2014.1003954

Ulster University (2011) Principles of assessment and feedback for learning. Available at: http://ee.ulster.ac.uk/assessment_and_feedback/index.php?/principles/

Ulster University (2015) Digital Learning Strategy - Digital Futures: a strategy to shape the future of Blended, Open and Online Learning at Ulster University. Available at: http://addl.ulster.ac.uk/digitalfutures/view/digital-learning-strategy-digital-futures

Ulster University (2016) Ulster Student Learning Experience Principles. Available at: http://documentslide.com/documents/ulsteracuk-learning-at-ulster-student-learning-experience-principles.html