Sloan-C Workshop on Feedback Strategies

PLP Goal No. 4

After becoming a member of the Sloan Consortium, I decided to participate in one of their week long workshops.  The workshop was entitled - New to Online: Effective Feedback Strategies.  It ran from 2/7 - 2/14.  It was well run and extremely informative.  There were three modules to complete and a few discussion posts that were used to engage with other workshop participants.  The facilitator provided a daily, concise, short video which helped focus each day of the workshop.  I found the workshop to be very insightful and I picked up a few more teaching "nuggets" that I believe will be helpful when teaching in the online environment as well as in the traditional learning environment.

The workshop referred to the Sloan-C Five which are pillars of quality that should be present in online courses.  They state that feedback can be directly applied to three of the pillars and includes learning effectiveness, faculty satisfaction, and student satisfaction.  To provide an effective learning experience, feedback must be usable by the student.  It was pointed out that one of the main complaints from students is that they don't know what to do with the feedback and the main complaint from faculty is that students don't do use the feedback provided.  Sound familiar?  Therefore, as an instructor giving feedback, we need to use terms the student will understand, keep it concrete, and provide examples of how to make the changes suggested - be specific and concise!

One of the most refreshing ideas was the concept that feedback should be instructive, not corrective.  It was pointed out that feedback should be balanced and provide positive along with need for improvement.  I must say that I knew you should "sandwich" face-to-face evaluations in the clinical setting with positive-negative-positive information but for some reason I find that I become extremely "corrective" on papers and care plans.  I forget to point out the good things I find.  Something to work on!

Lastly, faculty time and workload management was a major point of discussion.  The use of standardized or stock statements were advocated by the facilitator and others in the discussion board.  At first I thought, as a student I would not be happy if I found out that was being done.  However, as an instructor, I now believe it can be done well.  The key is in making it learner-focused.  Several suggestions were given to do this.  They include "knowing" your student and thinking about factors and strategies that may help address the student's life goals.  It was suggested that the instructor take notes from assignment to assignment to track the progress of the student and relate it back in the feedback.  Also, acknowledge when the student does implement the feedback.  Also, use personalization such as their preferred name and remind the student you are available for them.  Rubrics were also recommended and should include standardized feedback statements which will cut down on time.

Lastly, it was recommend to have a specific discussion board post in the course in which students can ask questions of the instructor about assignments.  It is imperative, however, that the instructor check that discussion board at least once a day (if not several times a day).  Use the reply to address all students (not just the one who originally posted).  You can address commonly occurring questions there or even post questions you get in emails in which the question and answer may help everyone.


For even more info - check out the links to a few articles I found interesting.

Seven Keys to Effective Feedback
The Need for Balanced Feedback
Assessment: Feedback to Promote Student Learning