Recorded audio feedback: bridging the chasm between educator and student in online assessment

Abstract

Provision of detailed and constructive feedback on written assessments is a challenge in many contexts. Increasing instructor workloads due to growth in class sizes further complicates having personalised feedback to student achievements. This paper reports using recorded audio feedback on written assessments and evaluating student perceptions of this feedback using a mixed methods approach. Students receiving recorded audio feedback were surveyed and their perceptions towards the feedback they received further probed via semi-structured interviews. Survey numerical data indicate that students found the feedback convenient and easy to access, clear and easy to understand and more personal than written feedback. Survey open responses and interview responses were thematically analysed and identified major themes and subthemes that supported and further explained the numerical data. This study helps describe student perceptions to recorded audio feedback, which may be a useful tool for helping connect instructors and their students in different learning environments.