FEEDBACK ON STUDENT ASSIGNMENTS: ARE THERE IMPEDIMENTS TO USING FEEDBACK TO FEED FORWARD?

At Loughborough University, the School of Civil and Building Engineering commissioned the Centre for Engineering and Design Education to undertake a longitudinal study, over three years, to explore issues associated with feedback on assignments from both the staff and student perspective. This paper reports on the third year of the research which investigated how students use feedback to feed forward into future assignments and whether there are situations or circumstances that impede students from using their feedback. The research also sought to establish whether or not students valued their feedback in ways that were not apparent to staff. The study used a focus group and four different questionnaires {(n=93), (n=64), (n=50), (n=68)}. The questionnaires were distributed to students at four separate coursework hand-in sessions and almost all attending students participated; this has ensured that the findings of the study are representative of students in this School. The findings have been used to strengthen feedback strategy within the participating School. This paper shares key findings from the study, in particular, issues relating to: the location (private versus public) in which students receive their feedback, feedback on group coursework and how effectively students use their feedback to feed forward into future assignments. The findings have implications for reflective learning, learner engagement and, ultimately, student satisfaction.