Audio feedback: Steps to follow

The understanding, relevance, importance, and effectiveness of feedback has been widely discussed in higher education. Numerous authors have defined feedback; however, I believe that the National Forum Insight (2017) comprehensively addresses all pertinent aspects by suggesting that feedback typically involves providing guidance on students’ work, highlighting both strengths and weaknesses, and ideally includes feedforward, which offers actionable steps for improvement. Carless and Boud (2018) expanded on this definition, describing feedback as a process through which learners interpret information from various sources and use it to enhance their work or learning strategies (p.1).  

Feedback plays a crucial role in student learning. Despite academics dedicating significant time to providing feedback, its effectiveness is frequently debated. Students sometimes criticise feedback for not being fit for purpose (Price et al., 2010) or for being vague (Nicol, 2010). Additionally, educators often find the feedback process highly time-consuming and become frustrated when their feedback is ignored or inadequately addressed in subsequent student work (Wolstencroft and de Main, 2021). Consequently, feedback should be strategically integrated into the module and assessment design (Winstone and Carless, 2020). 

Most feedback in higher education is text-based, and the issues with this method have been well-documented (Kirwan et al., 2023). Wolstencroft and De Main (2021) discovered that students often skim over written comments, sometimes missing crucial points. To mitigate these concerns, there has been increasing interest in using technology-based feedback methods. Research by Kirwan et al. (2023) revealed that audio feedback is more comprehensive, offering a personal touch that students responded to positively. They found that audio feedback was more holistic and multi-dimensional, incorporating emotional and personal qualities that resonated well with students. 

Over the past five years, I have implemented audio feedback for various assessments at both Coventry University and the University of Derby Business School, catering to undergraduate and postgraduate students. This method received positive feedback from various stakeholders. At Coventry University, audio feedback was provided to Business Management level 5 and 6 students and International Business Management level 6 students for one of the module assessments. At the University of Derby, it was used for MSc Human Resource Management and MSc Management (level 7) students and Business Management level 6 students. Compared to traditional written feedback, this alternative approach engaged more students. Additionally, academics involved found it less time-consuming and more effective. 

Initially, when I began using audio feedback, I observed that students were unaware of how to access it. This prompted me to discuss the feedback method during sessions where I explained the assessment and rubric. I also shared a video tutorial to help them understand how to access the audio feedback. Before implementing this approach, I consulted with the external examiner, programme leaders, and module team members for the module I was leading. For undergraduate students, I discussed the method and provided audio feedback for all submissions related to that particular assessment and module. Over 250 students received the audio feedback. However, for the Master’s module assessment, I provided audio feedback only to the students who expressed a preference for it, while those who preferred written feedback received it in that format. I took all stakeholders' preferences into account, and approximately 100 students received the feedback. 

Students found the audio feedback exceptionally clear and easy to understand. One student mentioned that she initially worried about a lack of detail in audio feedback compared to written feedback but ultimately found the audio equally detailed. Another student suggested that audio feedback should be used more frequently in the future. Other students described the audio feedback as clear, very encouraging, helpful, and more effective than written feedback. Notably, one student felt that listening to the audio feedback gave the impression that I was assessing her work and providing feedback in her presence. 

Based on my experience, I recommend using only audio feedback for reflective assessments, provided a rubric is used for mark breakdown according to the marking criteria, and overall comments are delivered via audio feedback. For coursework (reports), it is beneficial to include in-text comments, use a rubric for mark breakdown, and provide overall comments through audio feedback. If a module has two coursework assignments, it is ideal to trial audio feedback on the first coursework, assess student reception and understanding, and then apply the same method to the second coursework. If there is only one coursework, it is best to trial the audio feedback on the initial attempt and use it for the referral attempt based on student feedback.