GETTING FEEDBACK WHEN LEARNING ONLINE: A STUDY OF STUDENT PERCEPTIONS OF THE VALUE OF TUTOR FEEDBACK IN AN ONLINE LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT COURSE

An online course presents a different set of dynamics between teacher and learners than a blended course with its face-to-face component. Differences in teacher immediacy and online presence in online courses can affect learning effectiveness and student satisfaction with a course (Richardson and Swan, 2003), and a desire for more feedback has been indicated as a leading concern among student participants in online learning courses (Sull, 2008). In a blended communication skills course for student teachers in Singapore, students who took online modules in the course commented that more opportunities to receive feedback would have been desirable (Ellis et al, 2012).

The current study seeks to expand on the findings of Ellis et al (2012), specifically on the feedback preferences of student teachers in Singapore enrolled in online courses. This pilot study explores student teachers’ attitudes toward the provision of feedback in an online self-access English language enhancement course. In this course students select and complete weekly activities over a semester to help them enhance their knowledge of English grammar, writing, and pronunciation. They post their work to a journal on a learning management system where their tutors monitor and provide feedback on the posts. There is no provision for scheduled face-to-face contact, but students can request meetings and small-group sessions with their tutors.

This pilot study examines student feedback on end-of-course surveys. In 2010 and 2011 there was no provision for regular individual feedback on the submitted tasks but from 2012 tutor feedback was made an integral part of the course. The study explores whether the implementation of regular feedback coincided with a change in satisfaction levels with the course. It also explores whether there was a change, before and since 2012, in the nature of the open-ended survey responses that made reference to feedback given during the course.

The findings from this pilot study will be used to help design more useful strategies that online course tutors can use to 1) increase their social presence in the course and 2) provide more of the kinds of feedback that would lead to greater satisfaction and learner effectiveness in an online course environment.