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MSU educators are invited to view a workshop about giving meaningful feedback to students. This workshop is open to any educator who is interested in learning about strategies and tools for meaningful feedback.The workshop aims to provide educators with an interdisciplinary space and community to consider ways of providing effective and meaningful feedback to students. The professional development provided will offer peer-to-peer interaction with information and discussion that considers feedback strategies and tools across disciplines. Participants will have the opportunity to learn about strategies and tools for providing feedback to students, exchange ideas about feedback, and practice and implement ideas about feedback for course design, pedagogy, and practice.
 
By participating in this workshop, participants will be able to:
 

Identify characteristics of meaningful feedback and its importance for student learning
Reflect on ways we already use feedback in our classrooms
Consider opportunities and challenges for feedback in our classrooms
Generate ideas with colleagues on how to implement feedback in the classroom (both small and large classrooms) 
Develop and revise ideas for implementing feedback in the classroom, based on workshop discussions and peer feedback
Create short- and long-term goals for implementing ideas into the classroom
Connect with educators across campus to build community and conversation

 
The Meaningful Feedback Workshop originally took place on February 26, 2021 (synchronously via zoom). 

Photo by Headway on Unsplash
 
 
We suspect that now, since the semester is over, you likely will not be giving your students much formative feedback. But that doesn’t mean you can’t use this time to improve the efficiency of your feedback processes. Now that the semester is over, you have a great opportunity to do some forward thinking about next semester. And, if you plan it right, we think you can actually provide your students with more feedback, while spending less time delivering that feedback.
 
Although designing a semester plan for your class seems like a daunting task, it allows you to frontload scheduling due dates, giving you more time during the actual semester to flesh out the specifics of your course (like assigned readings and class activities) as it progresses week to week, assignment to assignment. To create this kind of plan, we are providing you with starting points that focus on two essential functions of your classroom: what you ask students to produce, and what kind of feedback they will need for those products. By creating a rough timeline of assignments and feedback, you can avoid overbooking your schedule (and yourself), and respond to students more efficiently.
 
As you will see, with this feedback plan, students receive feedback throughout the whole process of producing their research papers and projects, and get feedback on every minor product that leads up to the major products. The feedback is also designed so that students receive feedback on each of the goals for the Research Unit.
 
While not all teachers have the luxury to control all parts of their assignments or schedule, we hope and believe the strategy of developing a Feedback Plan is flexible enough to work for many teachers.
 
Designing a Semester Plan

Make a list of your major assignments. When will you introduce an assignment to your class? What are the goals of those assignments? How long will these assignments take for students to complete?


Make a list of your minor assignments. What smaller activities does the class need to complete to support that major assignment? How long will those take? Will they require feedback from you, their peers, the class as a whole (hey we have plenty of resources to help you with this btw)? Where will these varieties of feedback be most beneficial for students in your class?


Identify places where students need feedback. Do your students need your feedback on one major assignment before they can complete the next one? What goals do the minor projects support?


Consider your own schedule. Now is also a good time to remember to plan your semester timeline in accordance with your own academic life–are there weeks you will attend conferences? If you are a graduate student, when are your final projects due? When are your exams? Maybe avoid scheduling due dates around this time.

Designing a Feedback Plan

Schedule products. After you’ve listed your major and minor assignments and the amount of time they’ll take, begin placing them on a timeline.


Identify goals. Based on the overarching goals for a unit or a semester, which goals does each of these assignments support? Articulating these in advance will help guide how you design feedback prompts in the future.


Identify kinds of feedback students can receive. Knowing that there are a variety of ways to respond to student work, identify specific kinds of feedback students can receive to enhance their performance along project goals.


Distribute feedback moments across time, and distribute labor across people. This is a point we emphasized in our earlier posts — don’t plan all your feedback to come at once. If you distribute the work of feedback across time, students will receive more — and more focused — responses, and will likely absorb more of their feedback.


Distribute the labor of giving feedback across people. Students will receive more feedback (and, we believe, will learn more) if you give them the responsibility of responding to their colleagues at critical moments in a project.

 

From the moment you present a mid-semester feedback opportunity to the learners in your course, it is imperative that you communicate your commitments to acting on the feedback. Have you ever had a peer or employer ask for your input on a project or initiative and then seem to completely ignore it? Maybe your significant other asked for your opinion on ways to tackle a challenge and then pursued an opposite approach? If you can recall a moment like this, how did it make you feel? 
When you collect mid-semester feedback, you are asking your students for feedback. You want to make sure they feel valued and heard, that they have a voice in your class space, and that their input isn’t being collected just “for show.” You should clearly indicate which elements of their feedback you will and will not act on (and why). We know that students who feel empowered and who see their voice reflected in class activities feel more engaged and are more likely to show positive learning outcomes.
There is a body of literature that indicates biases are real and problematic in students’ evaluation of teaching. The goal of this mid-semester instrument is not evaluative of the instructor, but instead is focused on feedback surrounding the learning experience. That being said, be aware that a host of factors including (but not limited to) gender, race, and subject matter, stress, and load can lead students to make statements that imprecisely reflect the actual quality of instruction.
We recognize it can be difficult to look past the most impassioned individual feedback and consider all the data holistically, but remember that the “loudest” voice or the longest comments may not reflect the overall feelings of learners. One helpful strategy is to have someone you trust read the comments before you do, then provide you their overall impressions and filter out any inappropriate remarks.  
 
The following is Adapted from the Enhanced Digital Learning Initiative at MSU: Scott Schopieray (CAL), Stephen Thomas (Nat. Sci.) Sarah Wellman (CAL & Broad), Jeremy Van Hof (Broad). 
Additional sources: Faculty Innovation Center at University of Texas at Austin
Toshalis, Eric & Nakkula, Michael (2012). Motivation, Engagement, and Student Voice. The Student at the Center Series, Jobs For the Future.
Justin Esarey & Natalie Valdes (2020) Unbiased, reliable, and valid student evaluations can still be unfair, Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, DOI: 10.1080/02602938.2020.1724875
 

Are you having issues with the functionality of our platform? Or perhaps having an exceptional experience and looking to share some positives? The #iteachmsu Commons team values your feedback to create a space that helps educators to connect and grow in teaching practice. This brief tutorial will demonstrate how you can provide feedback to the #iteachmsu Commons. How to Provide Feedback for the #iteachmsu Commons:When visiting the #iteachmsu Commons platform, on right side of your browser you will see a green button labeled "feedback". Select this button to begin providing feedback for the #iteachmsu Commons. Once selected, this button will provide a feedback box where you can rank the user experience from "hate" to "love". After your rating is selected, the box will prompt you to provide a written explanation of your experience, providing insight for the rating that was selected. You can additionally choose to highlight elements of the page through the response box to provide pointed feedback on a specific platform feature. Once you have completed your feedback and press "send", you will be provided the option to share your email with #iteachmsu for potential follow-up questions or you can choose to skip this prompt. Your feedback will now be submitted, thank you for helping us to improve the #iteachmsu Commons!Additionally, you may be asked to provide feedback on occasion when visiting the #iteachmsu Commons. These survey responses are always optional, but help us to provide a useful Educator-driven space.    

So you've built a mid-semester feedback instrument for your course. What's next?
Explain to students why you are collecting anonymous feedback in the middle of the semester. 
Provide an overview of the process, including when it will take place, how you plan to use the feedback, and when you will share results with the class.
Share advice on how students can give constructive feedback, such as describe, evaluate, and suggest (the instrument itself enables all three).You can share the survey in the body of a message to students (via e-mail, d2l, or other previously determined mode of course communication).
Here is some sample language you could include in a message (feel free to copy/paste or adapt):
In an effort to make sure our class is providing a valuable learning experience for you and your classmates, I’ll be sending out a “mid-semester feedback” survey. This is your opportunity to anonymously share your thoughts on what is working in class and what could be better. No identifying information is collected as a part of the survey and the results are shared with me as a single dataset. I will not be able to identify individual student identities. Your feedback will help me  to design and facilitate this course in a way that is meaningful for you. If there are things I could change to make the course more effective I want to know. I’ll use this feedback to inform the remainder of the semester. Thank you in advance for your participation.
 
You could also choose to build in 10 minutes of time at the start of one of your synchronous course sessions (if applicable) for students to complete the survey. Tip: build this time in at the start of class to avoid feedback being based solely on that day’s activities.
Always be sure to thank your students for participating in the process of improving the class and remember course feedback should always be anonymous!

Formative feedback is information on our thinking or our performance that gives us time to reflect and act on that feedback. Feedback is descriptive, evaluative, and suggestive. That is, good feedback shows us what we are doing, provides some sense of how we are doing relative to our goals, and provides some suggestions for how we might improve. Having said this, simple descriptive feedback can be quite powerful.
Processing feedback requires reflection. There is immense value in regular reflective practice regardless of your role or responsibilities. Taking time to critically examine how our experiences align with our expectations creates opportunities for us to identify opportunities for learning. Engaging in reflection as an iterative practice creates a norm of growth and improvement. 
Summative evaluations of our teaching at the conclusion of each semester play a role in our institutional accountability. We can certainly learn from end-of-semester feedback and many educators do. However, if this is the only opportunity for students to provide course feedback, it comes at a time when they themselves are past the point of benefiting from it. 
Formative, mid-semester feedback, however, creates an opportunity for educators to engage learners in the process of reflective practice. Intentional reflection through mid-semester feedback can help explore the initial assumptions made about a class, gain insights from learners, and develop a more comprehensive awareness of teaching practice. Generally, because the knowledge gained through this process of reflection happens with students who have a stake in the course, this reflective practice strengthens teaching practice. Finally, it is important to note as our colleagues at Vanderbilt’s Center for Teaching have noted, “soliciting mid-semester feedback can improve our end-of-course evaluations, as it will both improve the quality of the course itself and provide students with early opportunities to raise concerns with the course.”
Finally, it is essential to note that mid-semester feedback is provided in confidentiality by students. Survey administrators will tabulate and send data to you. No one else will see or have access to the information collected on your course. 
 
Adapted from the Enhanced Digital Learning Initiative at MSU: Scott Schopieray (CAL), Stephen Thomas (Nat. Sci.) Sarah Wellman (CAL & Broad), Jeremy Van Hof (Broad).
source: Finlay, Linda (2008). Reflecting on ‘Reflective practice’. Practice-based Professional Learning Paper 52, The Open University. 

note: you can access a downloadable file of the sample questions here.Mid-semester feedback is a way your instructor can collect information about your learning experience and how the course design impacts your experience. This survey is your opportunity to share insights about class so your instructor can make decisions on how to proceed with the rest of this semester. This is an anonymous survey. Your identity will not be shared with anyone and will in no way impact your grade in the course. Your feedback is valued and appreciated. 
Please indicate your level of agreement with the following statements: (Matrix with 1 = never, 2 = sometimes, 3 = often, 4 = always)I am prepared for class.  I understand what is expected of me in preparation for class.I have opportunities to ask the instructor questions.The course meetings and activities motivate me to learn.The way new concepts are introduced is aligned with my learning style. The activities and materials are interesting and engaging.Instructor feedback is provided in a timely manner.Instructor feedback is provided in a way that helps me learn. The instructions for completing assignments are clear.The assessments are aligned with what we are being asked to learn.Synchronous technology (e.g., live presentations and video conferences) was used effectively to achieve the goals of the course.Asynchronous technology (e.g., threaded discussions) was used effectively to achieve the goals of the course.
Overall, my learning in this course meets my expectations. 

 Disagree 
Neither Agree nor Disagree 
Agree  

What elements of class have contributed to or proved most helpful for your learning so far? (For example, describe the times in this class when you were most engaged. Or describe activities or assignments that are valuable.) open ended 
What could be added or changed to reduce barriers to learning in this class so far? open ended 
Other examples of questions:
What aspects of this course and your instructor's teaching help you learn best? open ended 
What specific advice would you give to help your instructor improve your learning in this course? open ended 
What steps could you take to improve your own learning in this course? open ended 
What would you like to see more of between now and the end of the semester? open ended 
To date, I have found my own level of participation in the class sessions to be…

High
varied
low
none

The pace of this course is...

too fast
just right
too slow

How would you rate the work-load of this course? (high = 5, low=1)

5
4
3
2
1

How much of the reading that has been assigned so far have you completed?

100%
90%
75%
50%
less than 50%

How many hours per week, outside of regularly scheduled class meetings, do you spend on this class?

1‐2
2‐4
4‐6
6‐8
more than 8


Other examples of Likert Questions that could be added to the second general question example above:
Questions of General Applicability:
I find the format of this class (lecture, discussion, problem-­‐solving) helpful to the way that I learn.
I feel that this class format engages my interest.
I feel comfortable speaking in this class.
I learn better when the instructor summarizes key ideas from a class session.
I find the comments on exams or other written work helpful to my understanding of the class content.
I find that this class stimulates my interest in reading about this subject outside of class.
I feel comfortable approaching the instructor with questions or comments.
I think that I would learn better if a different format were used for this class (suggested below).

Questions Applicable for Problem-­‐solving or Laboratory Classes:
The problems worked in this class help me in working other problems on my own.
The problems worked in this class help me in learning the content ideas in this class.
I feel that I learn how to solve problems more easily when I work with a group of students.
I find the laboratory lectures helpful in understanding the purpose of the experiment.
I find the instructor's comments during laboratory help my understanding of key steps in the experiment.
I find the comments on my written laboratory reports helpful in understanding the experiment.
I learn more from the laboratory when I am given questions about it to think about first.
I learn more from the laboratory when I am given questions about it to write about first.

Questions for Discussion-­‐Oriented Classes:
I find class discussions help me in understanding the readings.
I find class discussions help me in understanding key ideas in the course.
I learn more if class discussions are more structured.
I feel that class discussions are dominated by one or a few people.
I learn better when I have more of a chance to speak.
I learn more from discussions when I am given a question to think about first.
I learn more from discussions when I am given a question to write about first.

Questions for Classes Using Team or Group Work:
I feel that I learn more when I work with a group.
My group works well together
I feel that I need more guidance for our group work.
I find that working in a group confuses me.
I find it helpful if the instructor summarizes results obtained as part of group work.
I find it helpful to get feedback from my group on my own performance in the group.
I think that groups work better when each person has an assigned role in the group.
Photo by Dean on Unsplash

Foundations of the Hub's Mid-Semester Feedback Instrument:
Generally, mid-semester feedback is formative and focuses on three basic questions: 
1.What would students like to see more of? 
2.What would students like to see less of? 
3.What would students like to see done differently? 
The sample questions provided can be used to build an insturment for students at any moment, although mid-semester is most desired because students will have had enough experience to share feedback and there is still time to make changes to the course, if necessary. There are colleagues across the university who already incorporate mid-semester feedback into their educator practice, or who have support from their unit to do this work. The Center for Teaching and Learning Innovation (formerly Hub for Learning and Technology) is offering resource to compliment the great work that is already happening, and provide mid-semester feedback support broadly.
We encourage you to built an instrument that is short, and includes both scaled and open-ended questions. The intention is to gain insight into the student experience as it relates to the structure of the course, not specifically on the instructor.  
Mid-semester feedback instruments tend to be generic, but you have the opportunity to use these sample questions in constructing an insturment that is helpful to you and tailored to your course(s). We have drawn from the work of colleagues at Princeton, Vanderbilt, Brown, Kansas, Yale, North Carolina, and MSU’s Broad College of Business to build this list of sample questions. We thank them.