Proposal Title
Corrective and confirming feedback lead to better academic performance
Session Type
Digital Poster
Room
FNB 2210
Start Date
4-7-2019 2:30 PM
Keywords
feedback, corrective, confirming, grade, performance, university students
Primary Threads
Evaluation of Learning
Abstract
Instructors must not only focus on what they teach, but they should also think beyond the content and focus on the tools they use for teaching and enriching the student learning experience. Instructors commonly use feedback to help students enhance their learning as it plays a vital role in improving knowledge and skill acquisition (Azevedo & Bernard, 1995; Bangertdrowns, Kulik, Kulik, & Morgan, 1991; Moreno, 2004). Students place a high emphasis on feedback, primarily because they believe it will improve their chances of success (Hemingway, 2011). Interestingly, students also report dissatisfaction with the feedback they receive at the university level. (Lew, Alwis, & Schmidt, 2010). For feedback to be effective, it must provide enough information to identify how performance can be improved (Goodman, Wood, & Hendrickx, 2004), while minimizing the total amount of information provided as students may not pay attention to feedback that is too long or too complicated (Shute, 2008). This study aimed to determine if providing corrective (highlighting errors) and confirming (highlighting successes) feedback at the same time leads to an improved academic performance in university students enrolled in a science program compared to providing corrective feedback, only. Performance was measured using the grades students received on a short assignment comprised of two separate written components. The results showed that students who received both corrective and confirming feedback improved their grade while students who received corrective feedback only did not. The researcher argues that confirming and corrective comments should be a part of instructors’ feedback whenever possible.
References:
Azevedo, R., & Bernard, R. M. (1995). A meta-analysis of the effects of feedback in computer-based instruction. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 13(2), 111-127. doi:Doi 10.2190/9lmd-3u28-3a0g-Ftqt
Bangertdrowns, R. L., Kulik, C. L. C., Kulik, J. A., & Morgan, M. (1991). The Instructional-Effect of Feedback in Test-Like Events. Review of Educational Research, 61(2), 213-238. doi:Doi 10.2307/1170535
Goodman, J. S., Wood, R. E., & Hendrickx, M. (2004). Feedback specificity, exploration, and learning. Journal of Applied Psychology, 89(2), 248-262. doi:10.1037/0021-9010.89.2.248
Hemingway, A. P. (2011). How Students’ Gratitude for Feedback Can Identify the Right Attitude for Success: Disciplined Optimism. Perspectives: Teaching Legal Res. & Writing, 19(3), 169.
Lew, M. D. N., Alwis, W. A. M., & Schmidt, H. G. (2010). Accuracy of students' self-assessment and their beliefs about its utility. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 35(2), 135-156. doi:10.1080/02602930802687737
Moreno, R. (2004). Decreasing cognitive load for novice students: Effects of explanatory versus corrective feedback in discovery-based multimedia. Instructional Science, 32(1-2), 99-113. doi:DOI 10.1023/B:TRUC.0000021811.66966.1d
Shute, V. J. (2008). Focus on formative feedback. Review of Educational Research, 78(1), 153-189. doi:10.3102/0034654307313795
Elements of Engagement
The conference attendees will be asked to reflect on how they provide feedback and if there are ways to incorporate corrective and confirming feedback in the future.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
Corrective and confirming feedback lead to better academic performance
FNB 2210
Instructors must not only focus on what they teach, but they should also think beyond the content and focus on the tools they use for teaching and enriching the student learning experience. Instructors commonly use feedback to help students enhance their learning as it plays a vital role in improving knowledge and skill acquisition (Azevedo & Bernard, 1995; Bangertdrowns, Kulik, Kulik, & Morgan, 1991; Moreno, 2004). Students place a high emphasis on feedback, primarily because they believe it will improve their chances of success (Hemingway, 2011). Interestingly, students also report dissatisfaction with the feedback they receive at the university level. (Lew, Alwis, & Schmidt, 2010). For feedback to be effective, it must provide enough information to identify how performance can be improved (Goodman, Wood, & Hendrickx, 2004), while minimizing the total amount of information provided as students may not pay attention to feedback that is too long or too complicated (Shute, 2008). This study aimed to determine if providing corrective (highlighting errors) and confirming (highlighting successes) feedback at the same time leads to an improved academic performance in university students enrolled in a science program compared to providing corrective feedback, only. Performance was measured using the grades students received on a short assignment comprised of two separate written components. The results showed that students who received both corrective and confirming feedback improved their grade while students who received corrective feedback only did not. The researcher argues that confirming and corrective comments should be a part of instructors’ feedback whenever possible.
References:
Azevedo, R., & Bernard, R. M. (1995). A meta-analysis of the effects of feedback in computer-based instruction. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 13(2), 111-127. doi:Doi 10.2190/9lmd-3u28-3a0g-Ftqt
Bangertdrowns, R. L., Kulik, C. L. C., Kulik, J. A., & Morgan, M. (1991). The Instructional-Effect of Feedback in Test-Like Events. Review of Educational Research, 61(2), 213-238. doi:Doi 10.2307/1170535
Goodman, J. S., Wood, R. E., & Hendrickx, M. (2004). Feedback specificity, exploration, and learning. Journal of Applied Psychology, 89(2), 248-262. doi:10.1037/0021-9010.89.2.248
Hemingway, A. P. (2011). How Students’ Gratitude for Feedback Can Identify the Right Attitude for Success: Disciplined Optimism. Perspectives: Teaching Legal Res. & Writing, 19(3), 169.
Lew, M. D. N., Alwis, W. A. M., & Schmidt, H. G. (2010). Accuracy of students' self-assessment and their beliefs about its utility. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 35(2), 135-156. doi:10.1080/02602930802687737
Moreno, R. (2004). Decreasing cognitive load for novice students: Effects of explanatory versus corrective feedback in discovery-based multimedia. Instructional Science, 32(1-2), 99-113. doi:DOI 10.1023/B:TRUC.0000021811.66966.1d
Shute, V. J. (2008). Focus on formative feedback. Review of Educational Research, 78(1), 153-189. doi:10.3102/0034654307313795