Developing staff and student feedback literacy in partnership

1. Developing staff and student
feedback literacy in partnership
Professor David Carless,
@CarlessDavid
University of Hong Kong,
June 26, 2019
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2. Overview
1. What is ‘feedback’?
2. Example with a large class
3. Teacher & Student Feedback literacy
4. Implications
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3. DEFINING &
CONCEPTUALIZING
FEEDBACK PROCESSES
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4. Feedback as information
Information about performance or
understanding
(Hattie & Timperley, 2007)
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5. Limits of ‘Teacher-telling’
Students are not well-equipped to decode or
act on unilateral teacher transmission of
information (Sadler, 2010)
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6. Feedback as interaction
All dialogue to support learning in both
formal and informal situations
(Askew & Lodge, 2000)
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7. Intrinsic vs extrinsic
Intrinsic feedback – interwoven
within teaching & learning
activities
Extrinsic feedback – conventional
written summative comments
(Hounsell, 2007)
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8. Feedback as action
Learners using comments for improvement
to close feedback loops (Boud & Molloy,
2013)
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9. Differing perceptions
Study 1. Questionnaire data from 460 staff &
1740 students
Teachers thought their feedback was more
useful than students did (Carless, 2006)
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10. Different mythologies
Teachers & students have
different beliefs about
feedback
Teachers emphasize importance of
feedback more than students
(Adcroft, 2011)
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11. Different mythologies
Teachers & students have
different beliefs about
feedback
Teachers emphasize importance of
feedback more than students
(Adcroft, 2011)
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12. Social constructivist
Action on feedback is constructed through
learner agency & interaction (O’Donovan,
Rust & Price, 2016).
Learning constructed within
the mind of the individual
through social interaction
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13. Socio-cultural
Meaning-making of feedback is mediated
via activity within social and cultural contexts
(Esterhazy & Damşa, 2019)
Learning situated within activity, context &
culture
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14. Information  action
(Winstone & Carless, 2020)
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15. The University of Hong Kong

16. EXAMPLE
Y1 SCIENCE – 300 STUDENTS
UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG
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17. Assessment design
Group project 40%
Mid-semester test 20%
Final exam 40%
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18. Feedback design
Staged group project
Peer tutoring
Help Desk
Moodle quizzes & forum
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19. Group Project
Outline (5%)  oral presentation (17.5%) 
final report (17.5%)
Staged design to promote feedback uptake
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20. Peer tutoring
6-10 Peer Tutors
Leading tutorials,
Supporting project
Approachability & credibility
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21. Help Desk
Consultation hours Wed 12.30-18.30
Staffed mainly by peer tutors
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22. Moodle quizzes & forum
Quizzes with instant
automated feedback
Student-generated Moodle forum
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23. Analysis
Designed group project
Rich in peer support
Pragmatic approach
Test-dominated
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24. TEACHER & STUDENT
FEEDBACK LITERACY
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25. Discussion 1
What is teacher feedback literacy?
What are key elements of teacher feedback
literacy?
#AHEConf2019
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26. Defining teacher feedback literacy
Expertise & dispositions to design feedback
in ways which enable student engagement
and uptake
(Carless & Winstone, in progress)
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27. Teacher feedback literacy
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Relational
sensitivities
Designing for
uptake
Managing
practicalities
Developing student feedback
literacy

28. Design capacities
Designing task sequences for uptake
Promoting peer feedback & SRL
Using guidance, rubrics & exemplars
Deploy technology to facilitate interaction
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29. Relational capacities
Clarify purposes and processes
Evidence supportiveness / approachability
Show commitment to help students
Show sensitivity in sharing feedback
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30. Pragmatic capacities
Handle tensions and compromises
Navigate different functions of feedback
Balance teacher-provided vs. student-
generated feedback
Manage compromises in workload, staff &
student satisfaction
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31. Defining student feedback literacy
Understandings, capacities & dispositions
needed to use feedback for improvement
(Carless & Boud, 2018).
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32. Student feedback literacy
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Making
Judgments
Appreciating
Feedback
Managing
Affect
Taking Action
(Carless & Boud, 2018)

33. Discussion 2
How might teachers develop their feedback
literacy?
#AHEConf2019
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34. Developing teacher feedback literacy
Informal sharing
Programme-based teams
R & D projects
Leadership & incentives
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35. Conclusions
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36. Partnership
Shared responsibilities between students
and teachers, in composing and receiving
feedback
(Nash & Winstone, 2017)
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37. Students as partners
Feedback processes negotiated around
students’ needs and preferences
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38. Possible ways forward
Communication & negotiation
Modelling
Students as co-researchers
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39. QUESTIONS
&
COMMENTS
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40. References
Adcroft, A. (2011). The mythology of feedback. Higher Education Research and
Development, 30(4), 405-419.
Askew, S., & Lodge, C. (2000). Gifts, ping-pong and loops - linking feedback and
learning. In S. Askew (Ed.), Feedback for Learning (pp.1-18). London: Routledge
Falmer.
Boud, D. & Molloy, E. (2013). Rethinking models of feedback for learning: The challenge
of design. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 38(6), 698-712.
Carless, D. (2006). Differing perceptions in the feedback process. Studies in Higher
Education, 31(2), 219-233.
Carless, D. & Boud, D. (2018). The development of student feedback literacy: Enabling
uptake of feedback. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education,
https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2018.1463354.
Carless, D., Salter, D., Yang, M. & Lam, J. (2011). Developing sustainable feedback
practices. Studies in Higher Education, 36(4), 395-407.
Esterhazy, R., & Damşa, C. (2019). Unpacking the feedback process: An analysis of
undergraduate students’ interactional meaning-making of feedback comments.
Studies in Higher Education, 44(2), 260-274.
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41. References (continued)
Filius, R., R. de Kleijn, S. Uijl, F. Prins, H. van Rijen & D. Grobbee (2019). Audio peer
feedback to promote deep learning in online education. Journal of Computer Assisted
Learning. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jcal.12363
Hattie, J., & Timperley, H. (2007). The power of feedback. Review of Educational
Research, 77(1), 81-112.
Hounsell, D. (2007). Towards more sustainable feedback to students. In D. Boud & N.
Falchikov (Eds.), Rethinking Assessment in Higher Education (p.101-113). London:
Routledge.
Nash, R., and N. Winstone. 2017. “Responsibility-sharing in the Giving and Receiving of
Assessment Feedback”. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 1519.
doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01519
O’Donovan, B., Rust, C., & Price, M. (2016). A scholarly approach to solving the
feedback dilemma in practice. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 41(6),
938–949.
Sadler, D. R. (2010). Beyond feedback: Developing student capability in complex
appraisal. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 35(5), 535-550.
Winstone, N. & Carless, D. (2020). Designing effective feedback processes in higher
education: A learning-focused approach. London: Routledge.
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42. THANK YOU
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43. Audio peer feedback
More active student role
Comparing own work with that of peers
(Filius et al., 2019)
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44. Sustainable feedback
Enhancing student role to seek, generate &
use feedback (Carless et al., 2011)
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45. International Journal for Students as Partners
• Encourages co-authored outputs involving
students and staff
• Varied formats
• https://mulpress.mcmaster.ca/ijsap
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46. The University of Hong Kong