Active Learning in Higher Education · 2008 · 142 citations · 25 references
EducationEducational AssessmentHigher EducationAssessment For LearningFormative AssessmentSummative AssessmentFeedback For LearningFeedback PracticesFormative FeedbackStudent AssessmentStudent ReflectionWriting AssessmentFeedback For ReflectionFeedback In Writing AssessmentFeedback Use In LearningInstructional FeedbackQualitative ModelsStudent Perceptions Of AssessmentStudent Response To FeedbackStudent Responses To Feedback
Written assessment feedback is under‑researched, yet students in higher education consistently demand meaningful, constructive feedback. The study qualitatively captures and interprets students’ perspectives on written assessment feedback via focus groups. Focus groups were conducted with Registered Nurses and non‑traditional higher‑education entrants to gather these perspectives. The findings produced a framework of themes—‘learning from’, ‘receiving’, and ‘making sense of’ feedback—forming a heuristic model that, with strategies such as feed‑forward, self‑managed learning, and personalized guidance, can improve students’ experience and understanding of written assessment feedback.
Written assessment feedback has not been widely researched despite higher education students continually expressing the need for meaningful and constructive feedback. This qualitative study employing focus groups captures and interprets the student perspective of written assessment feedback. Participants were Registered Nurses and non-traditional entrants to higher education. The findings generated a framework of themes and categories representing the feedback process experienced by the students. The themes were `learning from', `the process of receiving' and `making sense of' feedback. When this framework incorporates strategies such as `feed-forward', self-managed learning and personalized guidance it then represents a heuristic model of effective written assessment feedback. The model, created as a result of the research, should enhance the student experience and aid understanding of the complex processes associated with providing written assessment feedback.
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