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As educators, we know that feedback is powerful and gives us the opportunity to provide students with a one-to-one learning experience and individualized attention that is often not possible in our class time. We also know that good feedback is not just about pointing out areas for improvement and justifying a grade, but it also helps support developmental learning and problem solving that allow the student to grow in independence as a learner, where they can evaluate their own progress, identify any gaps, and take action that will enhance their future performance.
When we think about providing this kind of high quality feedback, many of us would imagine sitting with a student face-to-face and having a conversation. However, in many cases, feedback is not a live interaction and is provided asynchronously. When I faced this situation myself as an educator, I felt very strongly that I needed to do something more than just written feedback so that I could convey my feedback in a clear, cohesive, and supportive way. I came across the idea of using screen capture technology to create feedback videos, and I began experimenting using it with my students and I haven’t looked back. There’s now a growing body of research on the use of video feedback, and plenty of evidence that it is pedagogically sound and can help facilitate high quality feedback.
Feedback is an essential component in the learning cycle in higher education and helps students develop their approach to learning and writing in their degree (Foster et al., 2012). However, students often find feedback ambiguous, impersonal, not detailed enough and lacking explanation to be meaningful and useful, so key messages can get lost (Douglas et al. 2016; Winstone & Carless, 2019). Feedback is sometimes misunderstood and rarely conveys all the nuances the educator is trying to put across. Students often report feeling overwhelmed by large amounts of written feedback and find it difficult to process.
Therefore, how to provide effective, high-quality feedback that students engage with remains an important issue in higher education today. It is particularly pertinent for online learning where “there are generally fewer opportunities for spontaneous feedback through informal dialogue or social interaction in class” (Ryan, 2020, p.1). The potential of video technology to improve feedback practice has drawn increasing attention from researchers. Video feedback is becoming a popular alternative or supplement to written feedback and studies have shown that it is well received by students.
Foster, E., McNeil, J., & Lawther, S. (2012). Exploring new students’ conceptions of engagement and feedback. In L. Clouder, C. Broughan, S. Jewell, & G. Steventon (Eds.), Improving student engagement and development through assessment. Oxon, England: Routledge.
Douglas, T., Salter, S., Iglesias, M., Dowlman, M., & Eri, R. (2016). The feedback process: Perspectives of first and second year undergraduate students in the disciplines of education, health science and nursing. Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, 13(1).
Ryan, T. (2020). Effective feedback in digital learning environments. Melbourne Centre for the Study of Higher Education Discussion Paper.
Winstone, N., & Carless, D. (2019). Designing effective feedback processes in higher education: A learning-focused approach. London, England: Routledge.
Discussions
Think about all the contexts where you give feedback to students, e.g., on summative assessments, on drafts or formative tasks, in one-on-one consultations, online, face-to-face, synchronously, and asynchronously. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the various modes of feedback you use with students? What has been your most meaningful method of providing feedback?
Please share your thoughts and questions in the comments section below.