The document discusses student feedback literacy over the long term based on a longitudinal study of undergraduate students. It finds that while students initially value timely feedback, they later realize feedback is more useful if it focuses on a few key points in depth rather than many shallow comments. Students' engagement with feedback declines over time without opportunities for dialogue. The document argues for involving students more in feedback processes and designing curriculum to promote generating and acting on feedback in order to develop student feedback literacy.

1. Feedback for the longer
term: enhancing student
feedback literacy
@CarlessDavid
University of Hong Kong
June 28, 2018
AHE Manchester
The University of Hong Kong

2. The University of Hong Kong

3. The University of Hong Kong

4. Overview
1. Longer term perspectives
2. Student perspectives
3. Student feedback literacy
4. Challenges & implications
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5. Defining feedback
A process in which learners make sense of
comments & use them to enhance work or
learning strategies.
Carless & Boud (2018)
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6. 5-year longitudinal inquiry
Longitudinal analysis of four undergraduate
students’ experiences of feedback
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7. Key research probe
Eliciting examples of feedback that was
acted upon
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8. Timeliness
Draft  teacher feedback  submission
What was great is that she gave
constructive suggestions about how we can
improve. She pointed out what we can do
and we revised it. (Eva, year 2)
The University of Hong Kong

9. Action but …
• Short-term, behaviorist
• Limited student agency
• Risk of teacher dependency
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10. Less is more
“Try not to cover too many points, discuss a
small number in detail” (Candice, year 2)
“In-depth is better than lots of shallow ideas”
(Eva, year 4)
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11. Using criteria
Philippa & rubrics
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12. AFFECTIVE ASPECTS
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13. Feedback is emotional
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14. Affective responses
Eva’s development:
Year 1: craves support
Year 5: confident enough to face critique
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15. Timing
“Critical feedback at the end is no use”
(Candice, year 5)
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16. STUDENT CHANGE
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17. Long-term change
“I used to procrastinate
a lot but now I leave
myself more time to
revise my assignments
and do proofreading”.
(Alicia)
The University of Hong Kong

18. Disengagement
“From year 3 onwards I realized that I am
not too good or too bad, so I have lost the
motivation to improve. I still care about the
grades but not that much about the
feedback” (Candice, year 5).
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19. Role of degree classification
Final year scramble for
desired Degree
Guidance & feedback more
important (Alicia, Eva)
Always grappling with what
the teacher wants (Philippa)
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20. LONGER-TERM FEEDBACK &
OPEN LOOPS
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21. Provocative feedback
The most insightful feedback provokes
ongoing thinking and reflection
Puzzlement … confusion … interest
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22. West Midlands College, Walsall
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23. Final teaching practice
Supervisor (May 1983):
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“But where’s the pzazz?”

24. Philippa’s ongoing puzzle
“I want to be synchronized with the markers”
(Year 1)
“I still don’t really know what each teacher is
looking for” (Year 5)
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25. Feedback Loops
Unclosed loops
Short-term loops
Longer-term loops
Ongoing puzzles
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26. TACKLING FEEDBACK
CHALLENGES
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27. Student feedback challenges
Social-affective dimensions
Lack of engagement with feedback
Lack of strategies for using feedback
The way feedback is organized
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28. Teacher-centred feedback
Too much feedback is not aligned with
students needs and interests
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29. Limits of Feedback as telling
“Learners do not always
learn much purely from
being told, even when
they are told repeatedly in
the kindest possible way”
(Sadler, 2015, p. 16)
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30. Social constructivism
Action on feedback is developed through
learner agency, dialogue & co-construction
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31. INVOLVE STUDENTS MORE
CENTRALLY IN FEEDBACK
PROCESSES
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32. Eva (year 2)
“Feedback is usually one-way. I am not
going to respond to end-of-module
feedback”.
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33. A quest for dialogue
“To really understand the students’ needs is
a long-term process. To promote dialogue,
teachers could do more to find out how they
can help us” (Philippa, year 5)
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34. Student needs
Find out what students want & prefer
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35. Conditions for uptake
Students will only act if comments align with
their needs … (and belief systems?)
And there are opportunities to act
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36. STUDENT FEEDBACK
LITERACY
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37. Defining student feedback literacy
Understandings, capacities and dispositions
needed to make sense of comments and
use them for enhancement purposes
(Carless & Boud, 2018).
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38. Student feedback literacy
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Making
Judgments
Appreciating
Feedback
Managing
Affect
Taking Action
(Carless & Boud, 2018)

39. Teacher role
Curriculum & assessment design to promote
generating and using feedback
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40. IMPLICATIONS FOR
PRACTICE
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41. The University of Hong Kong
Interactive coversheet
Invite students to state what feedback they
want (Bloxham & Campbell, 2010)

42. Coversheet follow through
State the previous feedback that you are
using to strengthen this assignment
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43. Feedback designs
Designs which position students as active
feedback seekers & users (Boud & Molloy,
2013)
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44. References
Bloxham, S. & Campbell. L. (2010). Generating dialogue in assessment feedback: Exploring the use
of interactive cover sheets. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 35(3), 291-300.
Boud, D. & Molloy, E. (2013). Rethinking models of feedback for learning: The challenge of design.
Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 38(6), 698-712.
Carless, D. and Boud, D. (2018). The development of student feedback literacy: Enabling uptake of
feedback. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education,
https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2018.1463354.
Orsmond, P. & Merry, S. (2013). The importance of self-assessment in students’ use of tutors’
feedback: A qualitative study of high and non-high achieving biology undergraduates. Assessment
and Evaluation in Higher Education, 38(6), 737-753.
Sadler, D. R. (2010). Beyond feedback: Developing student capability in complex appraisal.
Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 35(5), 535-550.
Sadler, D.R. (2015). Backwards assessment explanations: Implications for teaching and assessment
practice. In D. Lebler et al. (Eds.), Assessment in music education: From policy to practice (pp.9-
19). Cham: Springer.
Sutton, P. (2012). Conceptualizing feedback literacy: Knowing, being and acting. Innovations in
Education and Teaching International, 49(1), 31-40.
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45. THANK YOU
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46. Feedback literacy
Learners need to acquire academic
literacies to interpret complex ideas; &
capacities to act on feedback
(Sutton, 2012)
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47. Orsmond & Merry, 2013
Limited research on what students do with
feedback; teacher-oriented feedback
models are questionable
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48. Feedback as telling
Learning from being told is flawed as a
general strategy because the conditions for
the statements to make intimate connection
with the student work (with a view to future
work) are rarely satisfied (Sadler, 2010, p.
548)
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50. Alicia
I don’t feel that I have received much
feedback that is particularly useful. Often I
just got some feedback which told me what I
was doing wrong (year 2)
I read through the comments but don’t do
anything to follow-up (year 4)
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51. Candice
For mid-term assignments feedback is more
useful, for end of semester assignments we
don’t come back to it because it is finished.
I can’t generalize the comments to other
subjects because they are a different topic
with a different teacher.
The University of Hong Kong