Abstract:

Molecules, Cells and Genes is a large foundational biology course offered by the Faculty of Science with over 1400 students. Due to the large student cohort, the course relies heavily on exams. Therefore, a large randomised question repository is used for mid-session exams to maintain academic integrity amidst a large cohort.

Students are constantly seeking feedback on exams and one challenge with such large courses is finding ways to provide personalised feedback on their performance. Traditionally, students want to know which questions they answered incorrectly but they struggle to connect this feedback to their overall strengths and weaknesses in the tested content.

In response to this, we developed an automated feedback system to provide students with a holistic view of their strengths and weaknesses by sorting the feedback into topics where they excel and topics they likely need to study more. The automated process uses a simple code to convert information on an Excel sheet to written feedback that is uploaded to the learning management system. This system provides students with valuable insights into their comprehension of lecture content, shifting the focus away from specific question phrasing and towards broader understanding and conceptual mastery.

Upon accessing their gradebook, students can view this feedback alongside the marks. Even though students often ask for feedback, they sometimes do not read it. Therefore, having a system that places feedback in close proximity to their marks can be highly beneficial, as it encourages students to engage with the feedback and utilise it effectively for their learning. This integration not only makes feedback more accessible but also promotes a continuous learning process, enabling students to immediately link their performance with areas for improvement and thereby fostering a more reflective and self-directed educational experience.

This pedagogical approach, which incorporates principles of formative assessment and feedback, has led to increased student satisfaction. It has also served as a bridge for students transitioning from secondary to tertiary education environments, aligning their expectations with the realities of university-level study. This initiative underscores the importance of responsive, student-centered teaching methods in large-scale educational settings.

Keywords:

Personalised Feedback, Large Cohort, Tertiary Education.