July 14 2006

E-Coaching Tip 19: Feedback on Assignments: Being Timely and Efficient

A frequently asked question about online teaching and learning is "How do you give feedback in a timely and efficient way to many students?"

Here are a few hints and background on this topic -- hopefully at a timely point in your term. Note that these hints focus on feedback on assignments which is a different task than providing feedback on weekly discussions: the feedback in the weekly discussions or open forum is public, open, and part of the course community dialogue as a whole. Feedback on assignments is more private. It is part of the faculty to individual student dialogue, shaping an individual's (or team's) growth.

Timely Feedback

• Always let students know when they will receive feedback from their assignments. You can do this by posting a note in an announcement or the place where you regularly communicate with the students. The weekly discussion post area is a good alternative to the announcement place.
• The "standard" time for providing feedback for larger or major assignments is one week. But be sure to be explicit and reaffirm this with your students. Posting a note about the expected feedback schedule is also a good opportunity to change this timeframe if the schedule in your personal life requires such an adjustment.
• Tell your students the "how" of the process by which you will provide feedback. Will you be sending back a copy of their paper with embedded comments? Or will you be providing more of a holistic grade and comment in an email? The new audio tools might be a good way of providing feedback as well.
• Constructing a grading rubric for assignments guides student learning and saves you time. A rubric lays out the criteria for grading and becomes useful as a checklist. Part of a student's assignment is to do the assignment with one eye on the rubric, as a way of self-assessment. Examples of rubrics are provided later in this ecoaching tip. A grading rubric also avoids any unwelcome surprises! Students generally can predict the own grade from the rubrics.
• As part of the rubric, review all the bases for the grading of the assignment. Will the grade be based on both content (research, thought, insights) and presentation (writing, grammar, clarity, citation accuracy)?

Conceptual Feedback

• Keep the concept of a student's "zone of proximal development" front and center. We are not ready to learn everything at one time. Our brains process information chunk-by-chunk and piece-by-piece. As you review the student's assignment and prepare the feedback, structure your feedback "tapping" into where the student's ideas are coming from and shape their thinking by reinforcing their strengths of their ideas, and guiding where you want them to go.
• If you are using holistic grading approach and providing feedback in an email, you may want to build a template for yourself. This template can do two things: (1) mirror the set of rubrics, reinforcing the criteria, and (2) encourage students in their growth and development. You may want to use the strategy of holistic grading, supported by a checklist, and enhanced by personal comments.
• Providing conceptual feedback can take time to construct thoughtfully. Building a template that includes reinforcing concepts and principles can then be modified for individual students, as appropriate.
• The new audio tools also have new possibilities for providing substantive feedback to the class as a whole. After grading all the assignments, you may want to use notes and comment back to the public forum/discussion board and highlight the strengths of the student's work. This is an opportunity to reinforce, praise, coach and direct! Of course, you can also do this same type of community feedback in the public discussion board.

Examples of Rubric for Written Assignment

Here is one example of a rubric for a written assignment that you can use as a basis for creating your customized version for your course. In this example the final paper is worth 20 points.

• The paper is well-organized, easy to understand, and well-written. The paper is presented well, with no major grammatical/spelling errors and citations are in accordance with APA guidelines. The paper is the right length, approximately XX pages. The paper includes a descriptive title, an introduction, a conclusion and appropriate sub-headings. (5 points)
• The paper is responsive to the content of the assignment. It includes, for example, a summary statement of your thoughts, the research and rationale supporting your recommendations, etc. (18 points)
• All tables and figures presented are thoroughly discussed in the paper. Additional resources are included, as appropriate, in the appendix. (2 points)

Example of a Checklist for a Written Assignment

Here is an example of a checklist that might accompany a written assignment. As you can see, this checklist guides the students through an evaluation of their own writing. Some variation of this list clarifies expectations for the student, as well.

Directions to the student: Before you hand in your essay, use this checklist to ensure that your essay/assignment is complete. If you find problem areas, revise before handing in the assignment. This checklist is used as a reference point for grading your assignment."

1. Do you have a clear introduction? Does it identify the thematic and organizational structure of the essay? Does it indicate the point of view you will argue?

2. Have you organized the material effectively, that is, is the sequence of presentation appropriate?

3. Is the presentation reader-friendly, that is, do you indicate clearly the transitions from one section/argument/theme to the next? Do you use headings and sub-headings appropriately? Have you eliminated any repetition of arguments?

4. Have you made a persuasive argument to support your informed point of view? Have you addressed both sides of the debate?

5. Have you used relevant source material? Have you carefully referenced all your sources, both direct quotations and paraphrasing?

6. Do you have a clear conclusion?

7. Have you included a bibliography?

8. Have you corrected all typing, spelling, punctuation and grammar errors? Is your assignment the required length?

   (Adapted from Briskin, 2005)

References

judith@designingforlearning.org
Revised February 11, 2010
Copyright Judith V. Boettcher, 1997-2010