Abstract
For many years, the Australian government has commissioned survey data on multiple facets of the experience of university students in order to improve teaching and learning and its outcomes. Over the last decade, these surveys have reported much lower satisfaction ratings for quality indicators related to feedback/comments provided to students about their work, relative to satisfaction ratings with overall teaching quality and the total student experience.
This case study provides unique insights into this problem by identifying common characteristics and student perceptions of online feedback interactions. It draws on a large data set of ratings and comments provided by university students in the context of their receipt of formative, pre-submission online feedback about a piece of their academic writing – at their time of need. The data was gathered from more than 14,000 comments from a 12-month period across multiple universities in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and the United Kingdom provided by Studiosity, an academic support provider to universities in these countries. The study captures the lived experience of the students by employing a manifest content analysis to analyze comments provided voluntarily by students at the conclusion of their online interactions.
The results support the position that a positive online writing feedback interaction is multifaceted, containing elements of both service quality and learning experiences and is influenced by both student characteristics and the institutional context. This high-level evidence could also be used to inform strategy development and priority setting around the provision of academic support services.
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Acknowledgments
This research was supported through an Industry Network Seed Fund from UNSW Science. Ethics approval (HC180014) was obtained through UNSW’s Human Research Ethics Committee and the authors acknowledge Dr Lesley Halliday for co-writing the associated ethics paperwork. The second and third authors are also members of the Studiosity Academic Advisory Board.
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Brodie, M., Tisdell, C., Sachs, J. (2021). Online Writing Feedback: A Service and Learning Experience. In: Padró, F.F., Kek, M., Huijser, H. (eds) Student Support Services. University Development and Administration. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-3364-4_13-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-3364-4_13-1
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Online Writing Feedback: A Service and Learning Experience- Published:
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Online Writing Feedback: A Service and Learning Experience- Published:
- 11 March 2021
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-3364-4_13-1