Feedback practices differ significantly between K-12 and higher education sectors, with K-12 emphasizing social-affective aspects while higher education focuses on cognitive elements of feedback.

Objective: To investigate educators' perspectives on feedback practices across K-12 and higher education sectors, exploring perceptions of effective feedback, student barriers, and methods for tracking feedback impact.

Methods:

• Qualitative survey of 254 educators from 27 countries
• Thematic coding using hybrid inductive-deductive approach
• Chi-squared tests to analyze differences between sectors
• Inter-rater reliability testing using Cohen's kappa

Key Findings:

• Higher education educators prioritize cognitive aspects and actionable suggestions
• K-12 educators focus more on social-affective elements like feedback tone
• Both sectors identify student attitudes and self-regulation as crucial factors
• Higher education emphasizes structural elements like timing and learning design
• Limited methods currently exist for tracking feedback impact
• Observing students is the primary method for assessing feedback effectiveness

Implications:

• Highlights need for enhanced feedback literacy among educators and students
• Suggests potential for integrating learning analytics and AI in feedback processes
• Demonstrates importance of adapting feedback approaches to educational level
• Emphasizes need for developing student self-regulated learning skills
• Points to value of incorporating technological solutions for tracking feedback impact

Limitations:

• Majority of data collected from Mainland China and Australia
• Presents only educators' perspectives, lacking student viewpoints
• Relies solely on perceptions rather than objective measures
• May not be generalizable to other educational contexts
• Limited geographical and linguistic diversity in sample

Future Directions:

• Explore integration of learning analytics and AI tools
• Investigate student perspectives on feedback practices
• Examine feedback effectiveness across diverse cultural contexts
• Develop methods for tracking feedback impact
• Study long-term effects of different feedback approaches
• Research feedback literacy development across educational levels

Title and Authors: "Feedback in K-12 and higher education: Educators' perspectives" by Flora Ji-Yoon Jin, Wei Dai, Bhagya Maheshi, Roberto Martinez-Maldonado, Dragan Gašević, and Yi-Shan Tsai

Published On: January 18, 2025

Published By: Teaching and Teacher Education (Volume 156)