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Tipping out the Boot Grit: the use ofon-going feedback devices to enhance
feedback dialogue
Prof Mark Huxham, Edinburgh Napier University
Dr Jan McArthur, University of Edinburgh
Jenny Hounsell, University of Edinburgh
Jenny Scoles, University of Stirling
6th July 2011: Assessment in Higher Education 2011, University ofCumbria
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Project BackgroundHEA ESCalate Developing Pedagogy and Practice and HEA UK
Centre for Biosciences funded project
Understanding feedback as:
- a dialoguebetween students and teachers
- an ongoingand multi-facetedpart of students engagement with a
course, rather than a singular process that occurs at only one point
Two feedback approaches (dialogue devices) were explored usingaction research
Factors that affect student engagement with these dialogue momentswere investigated using both qualitative and quantitative methods
Insights from these approaches then used to inform the developmentof other forms of dialogue
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Two Dialogic Approaches
Boot Grit- Situated in lectures as a response to ever increasing class sizes
- Confidential opportunity for students to ask lecturer about key concepts that
remain unclear at the end of a lecture
- Lecturer responds promptly to initiate dialogue
- Resolve misunderstandings or knowledge gaps that if left unresolved couldworry away at the students learning in negative way and create blisters
like grit in a boot!
Focused Feedback- Situated in major pieces of coursework
- Opportunity for students to request feedback on particular aspects of their
work when they submit it
- Lecturers then pick up the dialogue with each student as they respond to
their requests
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1. Student PriorExperiences ofAssessments
2.Preliminaryguidance
3. OngoingClarification
ofExpectations
4. Feedbackon
Performa
nce/Achievement
5.Supplementary
Support
6.Feedforward
The Guidance and Feedback Loop(Adapted from Hounsell, McCune, Hounsell & Litjens, 2008)
2.
Focused
Feedback
1. BootGrit
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Boot Grit
Immediate; informal; novel; open-ended An old boot
Text-walling
2 courses; 216 requests: 90% asked very specific,
focused, topic-related questions - demonstrates a highlevel of student understanding of the purposes of the
boot grit feedback in lectures
Boot grit comments:
Half life calculation thing? Very confusing!Fixation thing
Disruptive selection how it works
Sickle cell anemia
Clines (explain more) please!
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Boot Grit Cont.
Text wall comments very similar but with one notabledistinction: non-lecture related comments:
The person next to me wants a fag
My girlfriend is pregnant what do I do
Suggests familiarity and at ease with technology Irrelevant questions still allow and reinforce genuine
dialogue:
Question: not being able to eat in lecture halls
Answer: sorry but should help you stay awake...
Importance of introducing boot grit from the first lecture to
establish this form of dialogue as a natural part of the
course
- Can help establish the norms of course behaviour in
partnership with students, rather than as top down
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Boot Grit cont.
Boot grit feedback was a success: students engagedwith and understood the concept
Does not generate significant volumes of new work
Integrated into vocabulary of the school
Allows students to ask silly questions whileremaining anonymous
Provides an avenue for students not confident to
speak out in large classes
Perceived as part of a more general interactive,
participative style of lectures which most also
appreciated
Students liked to get answers to their questions!
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Focused Feedback Approach
Would you like feedback on any specific
aspects of this piece of work? If so please
indicate what you want feedback on at
the end of your script.
Edinburgh Napier University (n=710)
University of Edinburgh (n=460)
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Focused Feedback Results
Surprising results: only 3.65% students requestedfocused feedback
Mostly procedural requests
Request examples:
The parts of the protein that determine its location within a cell. I am
still not completely sure how this works. (direct answer) 70%
Were the introduction and conclusion long enough? Did I putenough information in them or should I have expanded them more?(no answer) 70%
Misunderstanding of feedback approach by
lecturer/marker
Conducted 21 semi-structured interviews with students to
explore the low take-up
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Possible reasons/barriers to uptake
1) Trust
it might draw markers attention to something they hadnt noticed before, orit might give some people an unfair advantage I guess[marker] might just
be a little bit more sympathetic to them
2) Lake Wobegon Effect
its probably ok for other people but I just um no not really ...personally for
me I dont think Id really use it but its a good thing for people who you knowwho have something to actually ask for
3) Power Dynamics and Dialogue
It [feedback] depends on the lecturer I think because some of them arereally general and some of them are really specific so it depends on the timeof the lecturer and how much they are willing to do
4) UnfamiliarityI know quite a lot of people who didnt do it but I think its because theydidnt read the WebCT stuff so they werent aware of it
5) Timing
getting the assignment in was just a bit of a panicasking for feedback waskind of like the last thing on my mind
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Discussion
The stark contrast of the success of two approachesprovide insights into how the most effective dialogical
devices or moments need to be introduced into the
learning cycle at points that are:
1) timely
2) enable informed participation
3) integrated into a wider dialogical relationship
4) appropriate to the teaching and learning context5) built on relationships of trust.
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1. Student PriorExperiences ofAssessments
2.Preliminaryguidance
3. OngoingClarification
ofExpectations
4. Feedbackon
Performance/Achievement
5.Supplementary
Support
6.Feedforward
2.
Focused
Feedback
1. BootGrit
Further Research in Feedback Dialogues
4.
Introducing
feedforward
in WBLexperiences
3.
Exemplars
for CW and
exams
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References
Bloxham, S. & Campbell, L., (2010) Generating dialogue in assessment
feedback. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 35, 3, 291-300.
Burke, D. (2009) Strategies for using feedback students bring to higher
education, Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 34, 1, 41-50.
Carless, D. (2009). Trust, distrust and their impact on assessment reform.
Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 34(1), 79-89.
Higgins, R., Hartley, P., & Skelton, A. (2002). The conscientious consumer:Reconsidering the role of assessment feedback in student learning. Studiesin Higher Education, 27(1), 53-64.
Hounsell, D. (2008) The Trouble with Feedback: New Challenges, Emerging
Strategies, Accessed from
www.tla.ed.ac.uk/interchange/spring2008/hounsell2.pdf 18/02/10 Hounsell, D., McCune, V., Hounsell, J., and Litjens, J. (2008) The quality of
guidance and feedback to students. Higher Education Research &
Development, 27, 1, 55-67.
Poulos, A., & Mahony, M. J. (2008). Effectivensss of feedback: The
students' perspective. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 33(2),
143-154.
http://www.tla.ed.ac.uk/interchange/spring2008/hounsell2.pdf%2018/02/10http://www.tla.ed.ac.uk/interchange/spring2008/hounsell2.pdf%2018/02/107/29/2019 Tipping out the Boot Grit: the use of on-going feedback devices to enhance feedback dialogue
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Questions?...
For more information: please contact Dr Jan McArthur, Institute for Education, Community and Society,Moray House School of Education, University of Edinburgh, [email protected]