scholarly journals Connecting assessment and feedback: A customised and personalised experience for knowledge-building

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-24
Author(s):  
Pryah Mahabeer ◽  
Fathima Firoz Akoo

Formative assessment coupled with effectual feedback is instrumental in enhancing student-learning experience and contributing to knowledge-building. However, feedback does not always translate into the desired outcomes for students receiving feedback and this compromises educational experiences and goals. In this small-scale empirical study, we worked with five postgraduate Honours students at a university in South Africa to explore their experiences of feedback on formative assessments in the learning space. We focused in a nuanced way on innovative opportunities and practices of feedback in the digital age. The data collected from the semi-structured interviews revealed that participants understood the value of quality formative assessment and feedback. Most participants reacted negatively to assessment grids and feedback received from lecturers. Some were unaccustomed to digital formative assessment and feedback as a developmental tool. They recommended a discipline-specific blended feedback approach that incorporates face-to-face feedback to make the digital feedback provided to them more meaningful. This would provide useful feedback that would create a customised and personalised learning experience for students in collaborative knowledge-building.

Author(s):  
Rebecca Lees ◽  
Deborah Anderson

This small-scale, mixed-methods study aims to investigate academics' understanding of formative and summative assessment methods and how assessment literacy impacts on their teaching methods. Six semi-structured interviews and a scrutiny of assessments provided the data and results suggest that while these academics understand summative assessment, they have a poorer awareness of the implementation of well-constructed formative assessment. While the academics were able to clearly articulate the perceived benefits to students from undertaking formative assessments, they were less able to identify potential benefits for themselves as educators, so these went largely unrealized. Opportunities therefore exist for tutors to utilize the outcomes of formative assessment to improve student performance, particularly around tutor-reflection to amend future learning and teaching approaches in line with the theory underpinning summative and formative assessment methods. The study highlights the importance of considering all stakeholders when thinking about assessment literacy.


Author(s):  
Emtinan Alqurashi ◽  
Ariel R. Siegelman

Formative assessments aligned with learning goals can improve student learning. Integrating technology into formative assessments can further enhance and transform the learning experience. This chapter focuses on how instructors can design and evaluate formative assessment activities that incorporate technology. It provides a practical guide for understanding how to apply the revised Bloom's taxonomy framework and the substitution, augmentation, modification, redefinition (SAMR) model to create meaningful technology-based formative assessments. This chapter includes evaluations of example technology-based formative assessments that align with learning goals based on Bloom's taxonomy. It determines if the technology used to either substitute or improve the functionality of the activity, enables the redesign of an entire activity, or yields a new activity that is impossible without the technology. This information can be applied to ensure the integrity of technology-based formative assessments and to determine if using a technology tool in a formative assessment is worthwhile.


2015 ◽  
Vol 75 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdul Rahim Hj Salam ◽  
Faizal Yamimi Mustaffa ◽  
Tina Abdullah ◽  
Md. Sah Hj Salam

This paper shares the researcher’s experience in employing the technology supported face-to-face collaborative learning. In achieving this, a digital interactive audio capturing tool (DIACT) was used to digitally capture the interactive event of collaborative learning among English as second language (ESL) teacher trainees in a “Computer Integrated Classroom” (CiC) environment. Having merely online learning of computer support which ignores the elements of face-to-face (F2F), the impact of “collaboration” seems seriously lacking. With the emergence of DIACT in a CiC environment, the researcher attempts to see how those co-located ESL teacher trainees manage to effectively communicate face-to-face and collaborate among themselves to build knowledge. The interaction was captured and transferred to computer assisted qualitative data analysis software (CAQDAS) to be analyzed for evidence of impactful knowledge building. Findings indicated that the use of DIACT in a F2F CiC environment has significantly helped students in collaborative knowledge building.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Juliana Souza

Summative and formative assessments are important for students' learning pathway. The article analyzes the blended learning model in the Entrepreneurship discipline, in two classes from the perspective of a learning experience as formative assessment, applied in the online platform. The study pointed out that students' access to content increases when participation is stimulated through a formative activity in the online environment. In the class of 54 students, 37 students performed the activity, while in the other class of 76 students, 67 students performed the activity in the online environment.


2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 177-191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacquetta Shelton ◽  
Igor Martek ◽  
Chuan Chen

Purpose – The users of construction technologies such as builders and trades people have been acknowledged as sources of potentially important innovations. These innovations may be in the form of safer, less labour intensive, or cheaper methods and processes. The purpose of this paper is to assess whether the Australian construction industry is providing an environment where user-based innovation is being supported and implemented. Design/methodology/approach – An explorative study was undertaken to provide an insight into actual experiences of the implementation of user-based innovation. The data were collected through face-to-face semi-structured interviews providing case studies on multiple aspects of the implementation of innovative construction technologies. The cases involved a cross section of advances, including product, tool, and system technologies. Findings – The main motivation behind developing the technologies was problem solving. The associated industries of manufacturing and retail, as well as consultants within the construction industry present the greatest barriers to implementation. Originality/value – This research provides a better understanding of the factors that are preventing the successful implementation of user-based innovative construction technologies in small firms.


2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (14) ◽  
pp. 822-826
Author(s):  
Nicola Ellis ◽  
Ellie Walker-Todd ◽  
Catherine Heffernan

Aims: Uptake of childhood immunisations is lower among Gypsy, Roma and Traveller (GRT) communities than in the general UK population. This small-scale study aimed to elicit insights from GRT mothers on their interaction with health services in London around childhood immunisations. The purpose was to inform a larger piece of work by the NHS England and Improvement (London) Public Health Commissioning Team to inform their planning to improve access to vaccination services for GRT communities in London. Study design: An exploratory qualitative study using semi-structured interviews and a focus group. Methods: There was purposive sampling of mothers from any GRT background from south-west London using snowballing methods. One focus group and three interviews were conducted. A thematic analysis approach was used. Results: A total of nine women were recruited and seven participated between March and April 2018. Five themes were identified: adherence with antenatal care, self-declared parenting expertise, family support, childhood immunisations, keep children healthy but ‘they say wait on the MMR until they are talking’. Conclusion: Compliance with antenatal care, strong parenting beliefs and cohesive family support are strong influences on decision-making regarding immunisations. The women interviewed emphasised their own expertise in child rearing. This was occasionally at odds with the health advice provided by health professionals. The women widely shared their experiences of health professionals with other family and community members and this impacted on others' intention to vaccinate. These are key issues that should be considered when trying to improve uptake of immunisations in GRT families in a face-to-face manner. Equally, it warrants further exploration in a larger-scale study to see whether this reflects the wider community and in order to tailor supplementary immunisation activities to improve uptake.


2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Margaret Kelly

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide an insight into the lived realities of d/Deaf prisoners in England and Wales, and to explore previous claims that they suffer disproportionately during their time in custody. Design/methodology/approach For the purposes of this study, a qualitative approach was taken. As part of this, 28 semi-structured interviews were carried out at seven adult male prisons in England with a sample of male hard of hearing/d/Deaf prisoners, and staff members who had worked with them. The interviews were recorded using a Dictaphone, and then transcribed as close to verbatim as possible. From this, the transcriptions were analysed using thematic analysis. In addition to interviews, observations were made at each establishment, and later recorded in a fieldwork journal. Findings Findings from the study showed that the way a d/Deaf person experiences prison depends strongly on the way in which they identify with their d/Deafness. However, it was also shown that there is little room for either deafness or Deafness in prison, with severely deaf and culturally and linguistically Deaf prisoners commonly experiencing the pains of imprisonment more severely than their hearing peers as a result of the Prison Service’s inability to accommodate such difference. Originality/value This study fused together the fields of Deaf Studies and Prison Studies in a way that had not been done before, considering d/Deafness in prison on both an audiological and cultural level. Moreover, excluding small-scale unpublished undergraduate dissertations, it was the first empirical study about d/Deaf prisoners in England and Wales to carry out face-to-face interviews with these prisoners. Finally, as the most in-depth research is yet to be carried out about these particular prisoners in England and Wales, a greater level of insight was provided than previously available.


Author(s):  
Thi Thanh Thao Tran ◽  
Qing Ma

This paper explores how a formative assessment-based blended English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) listening course affects students' perceptions of their listening performance and what difficulties they may encounter during the course. The study was carried out at the Hue University of Foreign Languages in Vietnam. Sixty students majoring in English took part in this study. A 5-point Likert-scale questionnaire and semi-structured interviews were used to collect the data. The results show that the students positively perceived the use of online formative assessment in blended language classrooms. The findings suggest that the online learning platform supported learners in experiencing rich online learning resources, actively engaging a flexible, personalised learning environment and effectively practicing their listening skills. Regarding difficulties, the lack of technical skills, and anxiety related to social communication strategies were perceived as common challenges that limit learner engagement in the peer-feedback activity and in the collaborative learning community.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 163-171
Author(s):  
Entika Fani Prastikawati

The spread of the pandemic COVID-19 has made many changes in educational policy such as the assessment in English teaching and learning process. The process and procedures in the assessment need to be adjusted from face-to-face assessment into blended and online assessments. Not only English teachers, pre-service EFL teachers are also required to be ready and adapt to the changes quickly. To adapt it, the integration of technology in the assessment process has been examined. However, the involvement of technology in the area of formative assessment remains underexplored, particularly in the teaching practicum conducted by pre service EFL teachers. The present study is trying to fill the gaps by investigating pre-service EFL teachers’ perception on technology-based formative assessment which is implemented in their teaching practicum. A total of 57 pre-service EFL teachers completed a Likertscale questionnaire. After fulfilling the questionnaires, there were 19 pre-service EFL teachers who agreed and volunteered to be in a semi-structured interview. The findings show that the involvement of technology in formative assessment is perceived positively by pre-service EFL teachers in their teaching practicum during the pandemic COVID-19. They confess that technology has played its practical role in helping them assess their students. Further, the implementation of technology-based formative assessments promotes the students’ performance.


Author(s):  
Adekunle Oke ◽  
Fatima Araujo Pereira Fernandes

Business operations are undergoing drastic changes due to the disruptive effects of technology innovations; however, there is insufficient knowledge regarding the acceptability and consequences of the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) in the education sector. Using the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), this study explores the readiness of the education sector for 4IR. We adopted face-to-face semi-structured interviews to explore the views of 33 key stakeholders in the education sector, to understand the readiness and acceptability of 4IR in the sector. Findings show that the education sector, especially in Africa, is unprepared for 4IR, although there are indications for opportunities to harness the potential of the much-anticipated 4IR. Moreover, our study demonstrates a mutual symbiotic relationship between the education sector and technology innovations. The findings show that 4IR can facilitate students’ learning experience and transforms the workplace, although there is a need to assess the learning environment, to understand the facilitators and barriers to 4IR diffusion. The findings indicate the opportunity for the education sector to harness the innovations associated with 4IR through research and teaching to enhance learners’ experience; however, this may require a significant improvement in education curricula, as well as investments. The findings contribute to the theory and practice of technology in education and the limited literature on 4IR in the education sector, particularly in Africa.


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