2.6 Assessment feedback
Students learn from feedback if it is timely and meaningful.
Example 2.6.1
Feedback on assessments should be taken seriously to help you learn. In this unit you will receive the following types of feedback.
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Marks will be posted into the Blackboard gradebook when all results for an assessment have been compiled. Marks will not be given over the phone. Exam marks will not be posted in Gradebook. While the marks for the two online quizzes will be available immediately, case studies are marked by tutors within two weeks of submission. The marked reports are distributed in tutorials.
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Errors made in your essay/assignment/case study are identified typically on the paper. A marking sheet will be the main way to communicate feedback on the essay/assignment/case study/presentation. For each assessment task you will get an overall comment as well as an indicator against the level of achievement against each of the assessment criteria. A summary of class-wide errors and appropriate improvement action for each criterion is provided on Blackboard.
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If you would like further feedback on the assessment task, you are encouraged to ask during tutorials or consultation hours. This can be done in pairs or groups if you have similar issues to raise.
The 
marking key can be used to provide students with feedback. This marking key points to specific aspects of academic and English writing that a student may need to improve as indicated in their assessment task, thereby reducing the need to correct individual student's expression. The marking key indicates different modules that a student can access for self-paced online help. The marking key can also be integrated into some assessment tasks (see Example 2.4.2).
Example 2.6.2
Feedback on learning.
In addition to the feedback you receive on assessments noted above, you will also receive feedback from a number of sources that can help your learning.
Feedback can come from:
- your peers during discussions or activities in timetabled seminars, tutorials and lectures
- your peers participating in online discussion board activities
- your peers during informal study group meetings, PASS sessions, or group assignment meetings
- your peer mentor and peers in your peer mentoring group
- your computer as you complete optional quizzes and they are automarked and provide in-built feedback. Some of these automarked quizzes are provided online via Blackboard or other coursesites and others via the Excel spreadsheet assignments.
- your peers/computer following completion of the self and peer assessment ratings of the early efforts in the groupwork tasks
- your tutor or lecturer during their office consultation hours or in after-class discussions
- your tutor or lecturer via their comments on online discussion board activities or postings to the coursesite’s Virtual Office on Blackboard
- your tutor or lecturer’s comments on your in-class contributions relating to the homework or in-class presentations and other assessments.
- yourself as you compare and reflect your thoughts and solutions with feedback. Don’t underestimate the power of self-reflection in learning. When you download the model answers to tutorial problems each week from Blackboard, or view the online discussion about the weekly topic, or listen to others ideas in a tutorial, make sure you really compare where you were different and think about how you might take that feedback on board for the future. This will help you pinpoint errors or weaknesses so you can solve the next problem and build your skills. You can then work on strengthening these areas with your lecturer, tutor or PASS group. Remember, knowledge is gained by constructing and building on previous knowledge, not simply memorising somebody else’s answers. Self-reflection is a particularly great tool for turning a negative experience into a positive outcome.
Example 2.6.3
Feedback on assessments.
A great example of how written feedback on assessments can be given to students provided by Dr. Iain Black from Marketing