If we had to define feedback strictly, it is the information some expert or agent provides regarding performance or understanding. There have been numerous types of research in the field, and an extensive body of literature indicates an exceptionally high correlation between feedback and student achievement. Key research in the domain has been done by Hattie and Timperley (2007), Hattie (2009), and Hattie and Zierer (2019), where substantial meta-syntheses reveal a direct and high degree of correlation between student performance & tutor feedback. Our professional writers provide reliable assessment help, offering expert guidance and assistance to students, ensuring high-quality and well-structured assessments tailored to academic requirements.
The results of a random-effects meta-analysis model reveal a high impact on student achievement in general. However, the authors of the research also noted and accepted the existence of considerable variance, & state that only such feedback that aids students in developing cues rectifies erroneous ideas & hypothesis and guides them down the right path are effective in the right manner and result in the development of an accurate & expansive knowledge base, potent information processing strategies, comprehension, and cognitive skills. Assignment proofreading services ensure your assignments are error-free, with grammar, spelling, and punctuation mistakes corrected. Experts review your work, enhancing clarity and overall quality for better grades.
But how does it all work? How does incorporating effective feedback help students improve their skills & ideas?
The Concept of Feedback
Information from the right kind of information is immensely valuable as, if used effectively; it can be used to enhance ideas & knowledge, overwrite & restructure viewpoints & understanding through cognitive dissonance, and fine-tune skills, tactics & strategies.
When it comes to assignment writing, there are various avenues via which one can attain feedback.
- Teachers can write notes and grade different aspects of the assignment, generally the most vital and major form of feedback. Teachers also often shower praise upon or reprimand students based on their performance. That’s also feedback and considerably affects a learner’s motivation and effort.
- A classmate or peer can also provide crucial feedback.
- The feedback from online academic service providers supplements the feedback received from traditional classroom learning. For example, a professional coding expert from a reputed Java assignment help service might show some tips & tricks that a school or college teacher may not know.
- Students can give themselves feedback through careful self-evaluation and thinking about their performance, strengths, & failings in retrospect.
- Answer keys and solutions are also vital components of any assignment feedback process.
The above feedback avenues are integral to a student’s overall learning process. A learning or teaching context is essential for feedback to have the most impactful effect. There must be some reference and specific information regarding the learning task (such as assignment writing) to ensure that the provided feedback has the desired effect.
Teaching, Learning & Feedback
In reality, feedback is an organic aspect of teaching. Teaching or guiding anyone without providing feedback to the learner is impossible. All the feedback provided by teachers, tutors, coaches, mentors, guides, supervisors, etc., can be categorized according to their nature.
Feedback can be provided in several ways in an academic context. It can be an effective process that boosts a student’s motivation, inclination, focus & engagement. Or it can be a cognitive process that helps students restructure, reconsider, & re-evaluate their ideas, opinions, knowledge, & skills.
And therein lies the essence of learning!
Measuring The Effectiveness of Feedback In An Academic Context
Hattie (2009) and Hattie & Timperley (2007) remain some of the most seminal research conducted on the effect of assignment feedback on learning. More than 500 meta-analyses have been incorporated in these researches that account for the observations and findings across hundreds of thousands of studies and involved millions of subjects.
Findings reveal the indispensable role of teachers in a student’s learning process and how their feedback becomes the cusp of evaluation and learning. Studies reveal more than 100 influencing factors directly correlate with a student’s learning and cognitive development. Feedback is one of the top 10 factors that affect student learning, with a meta-analysis score of 0.79.
So, what makes some feedback effective in the academic context?
- Successful feedback must be relevant concerning the learner, instructional, and structural characteristics.
- The learner’s skills, knowledge, abilities, mindset, perspective, and belief systems are all subject to change with the right kind of feedback. A learner’s context and characteristics must be considered to ensure optimal receptiveness.
- Effective feedback should be forward-looking suggestions.
They must aid learners in finding a clear path towards the objective while addressing past performance and failures. It should help improve performance, revise goals, fine-tune approaches, tactics & strategies, reduce uncertainty, and augment motivation & effort.
- There must be an intrinsic structure and system in any feedback. Nothing will be achieved if teachers and instructors provide haphazard information or subject students to cognitive overload.
The amount and the procedure of feedback information should be systematic, focused, and carefully administered to have the right impact. Furthermore, there must be clear links to the teaching context, the goals, and the success criteria.
Last but not least, having different levels of feedback can reinforce one’s learning process. Task-specific, process-specific, regulative, and affective feedback each have their impact and can be seen as a continuum of teaching.
As we wrap things up, we can deduce that there is no single kind of appropriate feedback when it comes to learning. The capabilities and nature of the learner, the assignment & its learning outcomes, and the ultimate objectives & criteria of success are all critical factors.
Well, that’s about it for this write-up. Hope it was an informative read for one and all. If you wish to be the best you can be, work hard on your assignments and listen to what your teachers say. And, if need be, work with the experts of a reputed assignment help company for valuable expert feedback.
All the best!
Author-Bio: Shane McDermott is a psychology professor at a public university in Melbourne, Australia. He is also a part-time tutor with MyAssignmenthelp.com, one of the largest assignment writing services Down Under.