Evaluation of a Mobile Web Application for Assessment Feedback

This paper reports an evaluation of a mobile web application, “MyFeedBack”, that can deliver both feedback and marks on assignments to students from their lecturer. It enables them to use any device anywhere, any time to check on, and receive their feedback. It keeps the feedback private to the individual student. It enables and successfully fosters dialogue about the feedback between the students and the educator. Feedback and marks were already being delivered using the institution’s learning environment/management system “Moodle”. The study used a sequential explanatory mixed-method approach. Two hundred thirty-nine (239) participants were reported on their experiences of receiving feedback and divided among several groups: (a) feedback delivered in “Moodle”, (b) formative feedback in “MyFeedBack”, and (c) summative feedback in “MyFeedBack”. Overall, results showed a statistically significant more positive attitude towards “MyFeedBack” than “Moodle”, with the summative assessment subgroup being more positive than the formative subgroup. There was an unprecedented increase in communication and feedback dialogue between the lecturer and the students. Qualitative results enriched and complemented the findings. The paper provides guidelines for an enabling technology for assessment feedback. These offer insight into the extent to which any of the new apps and functionalities that have become available since this study might likely be favourably viewed by learners and help achieve the desired pedagogical outcomes. These include: (1) accessible using any device, making feedback accessible anywhere, anytime; (2) display feedback first (before the grade/mark); (3) enable personalisation of group feedback by the teacher; (4) provide privacy for each student; (5) facilitate dialogue and communication about the feedback; and (6) include a monitoring feature. Three goals already put forward in the literature—(1) making the feedback feel more personal, (2) getting a quicker turnround by making it easier for the teachers to achieve this, and (3) prompting more dialogue between the educators and students—are advanced by this study which shows how they can be supported by software, and that when they are achieved then users strongly approve them.

Groups' contribution to shaping ethnic residential segregation: a dynamic approach

Some have argued it is possible to infer different groups’ contributions to ethnic residential segregation from their individual neighborhood preferences. From this perspective, natives tend to be more segregation-promoting than non-natives, since they prefer neighborhoods where they are the majority. It remains unclear, however, whether this holds when one evaluates their contributions to segregation within a dynamic perspective. Using register data from Statistics Sweden, I define and model ten different groups’ residential behavior based on their ethnicity and family composition. I thereby simulate the residential mobility of the full population of Stockholm municipality residents from 1998 to 2012. Even though my results at the micro-level are consistent with previous studies, the simulation results show that foreign singles’ mobility patterns are more segregation-promoting than any other groups, since this group shows a greater in-group feedback effect regarding choice of new neighborhoods, an effect that increases their flow from low-to-high segregated neighborhoods progressively. My results suggest that (1) integration initiatives would be more efficient if focused on this particular group and (2) a proper evaluation of micro-behaviors’ implications for macro-patterns of segregation requires a dynamic approach accounting for groups’ heterogeneous behaviors and their main interdependencies on shaping segregation over time.

Effective Virtual Teaching through the Interactive and Inexpensive Teaching Laboratory Data Management (TLDM) System

The COVID-19 pandemic has shifted a significant number of on-campus and in-person activitiesto an online, virtual setting. This has caused difficulty in achieving the same learning outcomes in the absence of in-person interaction, particularly for lab courses. In 2014, the Chemical and Biological Engineering department at The University of British Columbia developed and implemented a Teaching Laboratory Data Management (TLDM) system to improve the delivery andeffectiveness of lab-based courses. The TLDM system guides students through experimental calculations and automates a significant amount of grading for instructors. The TLDM system aided the department to better adapt to online lab courses and was integral to the virtual instruction of lab courses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through conducting surveys and group feedback sessions with students, teaching assistants (TAs) and instructors, we found that the TLDM systemhas been well received by all three groups of stakeholders for use in online lab courses, and provides several key benefits. Namely, it helps students understand the calculations involved in experiments and provides an effective substitute for in-person lab activities, while reducing workload for TAs and instructors. The TLDM system can potentially be a great tool to complementonline courses around the world in an inexpensive way.

Preparing students for psychiatry OSCE's in the COVID-19 pandemic. How can PsychSocs help?

AimsThe need for social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic has led medical schools to make use of video conferencing platforms in their Objective Structed Clinical Exams (OSCE) for the first time. Additionally the suspension of OSCE's in 2020 due to the pandemic ,has meant this cohort of final year students have never been examined on psychiatry skills. Our aims were to assess if our student psychiatry society (PsychSoc) run OSCE could help to prepare medical students for novel virtual stations ahead of their final examinations, and how this format of mock examination could be improved in the future.MethodOur PsychSoc (QUB Mind Matters) hosted a virtual mock psychiatry OSCE for 24 final year medical students using the video conference platform Zoom, approximately 1 month before their finals. The OSCE comprised 4 stations each lasting 8 minutes, and covered psychiatric history taking, risk assessment and drug counselling. Stations were marked by psychiatry trainees in individual breakout rooms to closely simulate real examination conditions. A post-event online questionnaire was distributed to all participants. 5-point Likert scales and free text responses were used to gather feedback regarding the content and delivery of the mock. A response rate of 100% was achieved (n = 24).ResultThe feedback from students was overwhelmingly positive, with 100% (n = 24) agreeing/strongly agreeing that the mock OSCE left them feeling more prepared for their final exam. 95.8% (n = 23) agreed that the opportunity to practice virtual OSCE stations improved their confidence, and all 24 students agreed/strongly agreed that they would like more practice of virtual OSCE stations. A common theme that emerged when asked how our mock could have been improved was the need for a group feedback session covering common pitfalls in addition to individual feedback.ConclusionThe lack of clinical experience and shift towards online learning has led to increased stress around clinical exams in the student population. PsychSocs can supplement formal teaching by providing students the opportunity to practice virtual communication and history taking skills that are not always covered in their undergraduate curriculum. However, as a psychiatry society our mock only assessed psychiatry skills, many of which may be relatively well suited to an online format. We would welcome further evaluation of the applicability of student run virtual mock OSCE's to other specialties. We have demonstrated that PsychSocs can offer much needed practice for students through mock OSCE's and have highlighted ways to enhance their delivery.

Feedback in clinical settings: Nursing students’ perceptions at the district hospital in the southern part of Namibia

Background: Feedback was the backbone of educational interventions in clinical settings. However, it was generally misunderstood and demanding to convey out effectively. Nursing students were not confident and did not feel free to practise clinical skills during practical placements because of the nature of the feedback they received whilst in these placements. Moreover, they experienced feedback as a barrier to completing practical workbooks.Objective: The purpose of this article was to report on a qualitative study, which explored nursing students’ perceptions of the feedback they received in clinical settings, at a district hospital.Method: This study was conducted at a district hospital located in southern Namibia. An explorative qualitative design with an interpretivist perspective was followed. A total of 11 nursing students from two training institutions were recruited by purposive sampling and were interviewed individually. All interviews were audio recorded with a digital voice recorder followed by verbatim transcriptions, with the participants’ permission. Thereafter, data were analysed manually by qualitative content analysis.Results: Themes that emerged as findings of this study are feedback is perceived as a teaching and learning process in clinical settings; participants perceived the different nature of feedback in clinical settings; participants perceived personal and interpersonal implications of feedback and there were strategies to improve feedback in clinical settings.Conclusion: Nursing students appreciated the feedback they received in clinical settings, despite the challenges related to group feedback and the emotional reactions it provoked. Nursing students should be prepared to be more receptive to the feedback conveyed in clinical settings.

Converting Access Microbiology to an open research platform: focus group and AI review tool research results

The Microbiology Society will be launching an open research platform in October 2021. Developed using funding from the Wellcome Trust and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), the platform will combine our current sound-science journal, Access Microbiology, with artificial intelligence (AI) review tools and many of the elements of a preprint server. In an effort to improve the rigour, reproducibility and transparency of the academic record, the Access Microbiology platform will host both preprints of articles and their Version of Record (VOR) publications, as well as the reviewer reports, Editor's decision, authors' response to reviewers and the AI review reports. To ensure the platform meets the needs of our community, in February 2020 we conducted focus group meetings with various stakeholders. Using articles previously submitted to Access Microbiology, we undertook testing of a range of potential AI review tools and investigated the technical feasibility and utility of including these tools as part of the platform. In keeping with the open and transparent ethos of the platform, we present here a summary of the focus group feedback and AI review tool testing.

A Study on the Effect of Mental Practice Using Motor Evoked Potential-Based Neurofeedback

This study aimed to investigate whether the effect of mental practice (motor imagery training) can be enhanced by providing neurofeedback based on transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)-induced motor evoked potentials (MEP). Twenty-four healthy, right-handed subjects were enrolled in this study. The subjects were randomly allocated into two groups: a group that was given correct TMS feedback (Real-FB group) and a group that was given randomized false TMS feedback (Sham-FB group). The subjects imagined pushing the switch with just timing, when the target circle overlapped a cross at the center of the computer monitor. In the Real-FB group, feedback was provided to the subjects based on the MEP amplitude measured in the trial immediately preceding motor imagery. In contrast, the subjects of the Sham-FB group were provided with a feedback value that was independent of the MEP amplitude. TMS was applied when the target, moving from right to left, overlapped the cross at the center of the screen, and the MEP amplitude was measured. The MEP was recorded in the right first dorsal interosseous muscle. We evaluated the pre-mental practice and post-mental practice motor performance in both groups. As a result, a significant difference was observed in the percentage change of error values between the Real-FB group and the Sham-FB group. Furthermore, the MEP was significantly different between the groups in the 4th and 5th sets. Therefore, it was suggested that TMS-induced MEP-based neurofeedback might enhance the effect of mental practice.

A Comparison of the Effects of Mindful Conceptual Engagement for the Teaching of the Subjunctive to Heritage- and Second-Language Learners of Spanish

This article investigates the effects that Mindful Conceptual Engagement (MCE) had on the teaching of the Spanish subjunctive on second (L2) and heritage language learners (HL) of Spanish. A total of 26 university-level undergraduate students participated in the study; 12 were advanced L2 students and 14 were intermediate HL students. The methodology used was MCE, which is based on the principles of Concept-Based Instruction (Negueruela 2003; Negueruela and Lantolf 2006). MCE has its origins in Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory and it proposes that the creation and manipulation of didactic models by students promotes the internalization of complex grammatical concepts that would otherwise require long grammatical explanations. Models need to be generalizable and informative and can include, for example, flowcharts, pictures, or schemas among others. In the present study, the concept of [±EXPERIENCE] (Bull 1965) was used to teach the variable uses of indicative and subjunctive in adjectival relative clauses (Busco unas tijeras que cortan/corten). Students had to create their own models and use them to complete a series of assignments in class and at home. Production and interpretation exercises were used in pre- and post-test questionnaires to gauge their improvement. Feedback questionnaires were administered three weeks after the intervention to measure the attitudes and perceptions towards the use of didactic models. Results indicate that both groups improved their indicative/subjunctive interpretation and production abilities after MCE. However, statistically significant differences exist between HL and L2 students according to type of task and student group. Feedback questionnaire results also show that MCE was regarded as positive and useful by both groups.

Impact and utility of COLONTOWN, an online CRC patient and caregiver support group in clinical trial design.

140 Background: Online cancer patient and caregiver support groups have burgeoned in the recent years; many provide critical emotional support and experiential wisdom to newly diagnosed patients. We outline below our experience engaging patients in clinical trial design working with COLONTOWN, a 5000+ member, online colorectal cancer (CRC) patient and caregiver support and educational community. Effective trial design is a complicated and lengthy process that requires input from multiple sources. Complex trial design can be particularly challenging, where opinions are mixed and a clear path forward may not be visible. Informed patient perspectives from support groups can be invaluable in such situations. Methods: Principal Investigators (PIs) for the oligometastatic CRC ERASure trial and the Janus rectal cancer trial worked with the lead author, a patient who is the Scientific Director of COLONTOWN. An interactive survey strategy was adopted and followed to solicit group feedback. COLONTOWN members (n = 70-120) were enthusiastic to participate and share the logic behind poll choices, and their personal experiences. Poll participation led to additional scientific discussion and improved community engagement around the survey questions. Poll data and highlights of the discussion were collected and passed on to study PIs in a de-identified manner. Results: Feedback from COLONTOWN helped PIs gauge patient enthusiasm for trial concepts and provide patient perspective and clarity to controversial questions in study design. This was particularly useful where data to support more than one option was available and the guidance from the NCI Task Force or cooperative group was split. The perspective from COLONTOWN was invaluable and used alongside NCI Task Force and cooperative group feedback to make decisions to move the trial concept forward. Conclusions: Support groups such as COLONTOWN are a versatile, valuable, underutilized and available resource that can be used to tap into patient perspectives during any clinical trial design process. Ideally, when utilized early, structured patient input can provide unique insights to PIs developing clinical trial concepts that could eliminate barriers and shorten the inception part of trial design. Increased awareness and knowledge of trial design support provided by such cancer communities could facilitate the development of patient-friendly trials to promote better accrual.