Perceived improvement of enhanced screencasting feedback on primary students

Abstract

Feedback is an essential element in the learning process and has an enormous impact on learner achievement. The importance of providing effective feedback to students is well known by teachers, yet as we shift to a modern 21st century ICT enabled classroom, more research is needed to evaluate best pedagogical practices for teachers to create and deliver effective feedback using the enhanced ICT resources available. Traditionally, written feedback is given on students’ written assignments. Research has shown many problems arise when employing this method. In today’s new learning environment, the practice of giving written feedback may no longer be the most effective way in communicating feedback with students. One innovative approach to creating effective feedback content is using screencasts to deliver action focused, timely and clear feedback to students. This study is focused on the use of enhanced screencasting as a model for creating effective feedback as measured by students’ attitudes and perceptions of improvement in a creative writing course. This exploratory study examines 25 upper primary students enrolled in an advanced writing course in Hong Kong. The findings revealed in this paper are encouraging as both quantitative and qualitative data was analyzed to show students’ positive attitudes and perceptions towards the screencasting method of communicating feedback. The implications for pedagogical innovations as well as limitations and future research are also discussed.