Using Screencasting and Grademark to provide feedback, Dr Sheila Hope

In this recording (video file) Dr Sheila Hope outlines her experiences of providing feedback using Grademark and screen capture software Camtasia.  More specifically she describes the practical issues faced and compares the use of jing (freely available screen capture software) with Camtasia a more complex programme, and details how else she has been using Camtasia to support student learning.  In this project the general process followed was students would submit their assignment to a Turnitin drop box in the VLE where the work would be marked using Camtasia to record the comments and screen actions.

Using audio to provide general feedback on exams, Dr Bill Dixon

Dr Bill Dixon (School of Sociology and Criminology) provides a description of his experiences of using audio to provide general feedback to all students on a module in relation to a multiple choice exam.

1.    In the project what technology and /or process did you use to provide feedback to students?

I wanted to provide generic feedback in an accessible format to first year students on an MCQ exam.  I recorded a sound file in MP3 format using a very simple recorder provided by the STAF project and uploaded it to the module section (CRI-10010 Understanding Crime) on the KLE.  

2.    Prior to the project how would you normally provide feedback to students?

In previous years I had provided written generic feedback in the form of a Word document posted on the KLE.  I was disappointed by the number of students accessing this feedback and given up doing so in 2009/10.

3.     Did you find providing feedback was more or less efficient than the process normally used?

Yes.  Although the process was new to me and I made several false starts with the recording, it took me no more than an hour to record and upload a 17 minute sound file.  Writing a Word document covering the same ground has taken me up to 2 hours in the past.

4.     Did using the technology allow you to provide richer or more detailed feedback to students when compared with the ‘normal’ process used?

It is hard to say whether the feedback provided in the sound file was richer or more detailed but it may well have seemed to be more immediate and personal.  But I have no hard evidence to support this hunch.

5.     Do you think that the students benefited from the change in feedback process? (Why? What is your data?)

With roughly similar numbers of students registered on the module the total number of visits to the audio file in 2010/11 from the date of release to 27th May was 52.  The corresponding number of visits to the Word document made available in 2008/9 was 29 over the same period.  

6.    From your perspective, what were the main advantages of using this process to produce feedback?

From my perspective the strengths of this process are the sense of immediacy (perhaps even intimacy) that a sound file provides and the time saved in creating such a file rather than a written document.

7.    From your perspective, were there any disadvantages to using this process to deliver feedback?

None.

8.    How do you think the process used could be improved to make it easier to use?

No - like most things, practice will make the process (more) perfect.

9.    Will you continue to use the intervention in your teaching practice? If not, what would need to change for you to adopt the intervention as current practice?

I would certainly use a sound file to provide generic exam feedback again.  Since using this technology to record feedback I have also used it to record an entire lecture which was then uploaded to the KLE.  

Using Screencasting to provide timely general feedback on assessments, Dr Katherine Haxton

Screencasting, also known as vodcasting, offers a means of providing mini-lectures working through answers to assessments that students can view at a time and place of their choosing, rather than being forced to listen in a timetabled class.  Crucially, screencasts of model answers and problem solving allow teachers to reveal their problem solving strategy, something not easily conveyed with written answers. 

We use a Toshiba tablet PC running Windows 7 and Camtasia Studio 7 and a digital voice recorder was used in place of the internal microphone to record high quality audio which was then edited into the screencast. The screencasts were edited before production of the video to remove any awkward pauses or stumbles.  This enabled the screencasts to be recorded in one attempt. Custom production settings were used within Camtasia Studio 7 to enable a table of contents to be produced in the finished video. This allows students to navigate to a specific part of the screencast, for example a specific PowerPoint slide title, enabling them to revisit content easily. Screencasts were approximately 5 minutes in length (the maximum length for online production) and took around 20 minutes to prepare, record and edit each after the initial learning curve. 

Screencasts were used to provide model answers to a number of class tests in the 2010/11 academic year including those involving spectroscopic data interpretation and main group inorganic chemistry. For first year Chemistry, screencast model answers and feedback were provided in addition to marked class test scripts, but the level of feedback offered on the marked scripts was reduced to only the key points and uncommon errors, and students were directed to consult the screencast model answer feedback.  

Screencasts were well received by the students with most rating them equal to or better than written, individual feedback. 

In particular, the opportunity to watch and see the problem solving strategy was identified as particularly useful:

“I found the video feedback to be very helpful.  It allowed me to look at my answers in the comfort of my own home, without using up valuable problem class / lecture time.  [The] commentary highlighted some points that would not have been easily conveyed in writing alone.” – First Year Student

Please see below for a more video of Dr Katherine Haxton explaining more  

http://tinyurl.com/projectstaf-eval-Katherine 

Providing video feedback to Music Technology Students, Dr Diego Garro

In this recording Dr Diego Garro discusses his experiences of providing video feedback to students, the recording has been separated in to three parts, part 1, part 2, part 3.  The students submitted a portfolio of video clips on video-DVD.  Feedback was recorded by playing  the video-DVD back on the computer and recording, with a screen-capture application, the computer output and sound/video from a webcam. A talking head will appear, in the video feedback, in a little inset window inside the DVD player window. Comments will be provided on parts of the videoclips.  Feedback was then delivered to the students through the KLE.

This approach was taken on a level 2 module in music technology consisting of 35 students.

Using audio for feedback on assessments

Supported by project STAF Dr Dave McGarvey has been using audio to provide feedback on a range of assessments. A detailed explanation of the approach take can be found here using audio feedback on assessments, a video outlining his experience of providing feedback in this way can be found here, part 1 and part 2

Moving from paper to online marking using Grademark, Dr Mark Featherstone

In this project Dr Mark Featherstone moved from paper based assignment marking and feedback to electronic marking and feedback using Grademark.  This was initially tried on a small piece of written work.  It worked well so Mark decided to use Grademark on a larger piece of written work (circa 2500 words for 25 students).  Outlined below are Marks findings, to summarise he found that using Grademark changed the way he marked and allowed him to provide richer more detailed feedback to students.  

Comments from the students included 

“The electronic feedback was very helpful and made my research proposal have a better direction and conclusion”

“Electronic feedback was fantastic, best and most helpful way I’ve had work marked so far at uni”

“Electronic feedback was positive and encouraging. Provided new links to further improve quality of word project”

Responses to Questions

Further details of his experience can be found here 

Using a tablet PC and Grademark for online marking, Dr Jan Hoole

Dr Jan Hoole describes her experience of using a tablet PC to mark using Grademark.  She finds that the tablet PC didn’t suit her style of marking but was impressed by the features Grademark offered.  This was project was carried out with a group of MSc students in Life Sciences.  The recording is three parts, part 1,part 2 and part 3

Providing Feedback to English Language students using Screencapture and Grademark, Dr Jody Harlowe

In this project Dr Jody Harlowe used Jing (a free screen capture program) in conjunction with Grademark.  This project looked to provide richer feedback to English Language students.  Students submitted their work to turnitin where it was marked using the Grademark features, a specific quick mark set was developed based on previous paper rubrics.  The marker would then use Jing to record audio whilst capturing the Grademarked paper on screen this allowed the marker to convey in more detail specific language errors and provide more directed feedback to the students.  Further details can be found here

Providing audio feedback to level 3 Psychology students, Professor Nicky Edelstyn

In this recording (audio file) Professor Nicky Edelstyn discusses her experiences of providing audio feedback to third year students in her special interest group.  The feedback was delivered to the students through the KLE via a private discussion journal.  The experience from a student’s perspective was quite positive, some student comments are noted below.   

“Audio feedback worked fine. I really liked feedback being presented in this way, and I feel I've got a lot more out of it than just reading a  feedback sheet.”

“I liked the audio feedback as sometimes written feedback can be misunderstood or hard to read. However, I think there were some issues in the practicalities of distributing the audio feedback- so this probably needs to be considered in more detail.”

“I found the audio feedback much more useful than the standard feedback sheet in seeing where exactly I went wrong, and could take from that a better idea of where to improve in the future. Thank you”

“I really enjoyed getting the audio feedback and I thought it was a new and inventive way of getting feedback. It was a very good idea as you were able to ask question on what you thought you didn't do well on and get clarification. So all in all I think this type of feedback should be use more universally and often.”

Using the handwriting features of a tablet PC to provide feedback electronically submitted group work, Dr Zoe Robinson

In this project Dr Zoe Robinson used features in a tablet PC that allow for word files to be annotated by hand a.  In brief the files are submitted electronically through the KLE and then opened on the tablet PC through Word where they can be annotated by hand on screen using the pen provided.  The files are returned to students through the same means as they were submitted.  Outlined in the recording (audio file) are Dr Zoe Robinsons views on using this method to provide feedback to students on group work.

Using a tablet PC and Grademark for online marking, Dr Sarah Taylor

In this recording (audio file) Dr Sarah Taylor describes her experience of using a tablet PC to mark using Grademark. Whilst the tablet PC didn’t suit her style of marking but was impressed by the features Grademark offered. She also discusses the main advantages and disadvantages of Grademark. This was project was carried out with a group of MSc students in Life Sciences. 

Using audio feedback and electronic submission for French Language students, Mr Yvan Tardy

In this recording (audio file) Yvan Tardy outlines how he used audio files to provide feedback to students and his perception of its use. This projects method was for students to submit word files to the KLE Yvan then used word track changes combined with audio files as feedback these files were then delivered through the KLE back to students. Amongst his findings Yvan found that the feedback from the students was positive and that he could convey a lot more information using audio than he could in written form. He also found that it was much easier to explain where mistakes in the French language were using audio. Yvan is moving towards trying screen capture for feedback next and asking the students to submit some assessments as audio files

Providing all students with feedback on their OSCE’s performance via an interactive website, Adrain Molyneux and Chris Harrison

Providing all students with feedback on their OSCE’s performance via an interactive website, Adrian Molyneux and Chris Harrison

The National Student Survey (NSS) has demonstrated a strong student desire for more, and more timely, feedback. Assessments in medical education, especially Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs), are particularly expensive, so it makes sense to maximise the value that can be obtained from them. Traditionally, feedback following ‘high-stakes’ summative OSCEs has been limited to confirmation of whether students have passed or failed. Feedback after OSCEs is likely to be popular with students and provides value for money. However, the feasibility of providing detailed feedback to whole year groups is difficult. Most resources are therefore usually invested in students who fail assessments. However, all students would benefit from feedback to improve their performance. This is particularly relevant in healthcare, where it is important to identify potential gaps in a student’s competence, even when they have passed an assessment overall. 

To try to meet these conflicting needs, we have designed an interactive website to deliver feedback after all OSCEs and OSSEs. It is designed to upload spreadsheets created for the exam board in a simple process to enable delivery of feedback at the same time as release of results, via the institutional VLE. Students are given options to receive the feedback in a variety of different formats, including station-by-station analysis or analysis of their performance in certain skill domains across multiple stations. Guidance is given to help students reflect on the feedback and develop an action plan. When it was introduced to Year 1 students, 130 students made over 4000 separate page hits within the first 24 hours. We are performing detailed evaluation of how students use the website and how long they spend on different sections. 

Following this successful trial and enthusiastic acceptance by students, this method of dissemination of students’ performance and feedback will be embedded in our practices.  It is planned to evolve the process to harvest and deliver richer content and offer compatibility with the ever growing desire to access tailored content on mobile devices.

This is an ongoing innovation for further details on its progress please contact Adrian Molyneux or Chris Harrison

The use of Audio Visual Technology to Enhance feedback, Glenn Hussey

Glenn Hussey describes his approach to the use of Audio Visual Technology in enhancing exam feedback, further details can be found here

Using a tablet PC and Grademark for marking online, Professor Nicky Edelstyn

In this recording Professor Nicky Edelstyn discusses her experiences of using Grademark and a tablet pc to provide feedback to third year students on their draft dissertations. She finds that she is able to provide more directed feedback to students and that the students found the feedback using Grademark easy to access and use.

Using a larger screen for marking using Grademark, Dr Carole Watkins

In this project Dr Carole Watkins outlines how using a larger screen (24inch widescreen) aided her use of marking online using the Grademark facility and reports on how she finds using Grademark. A fuller description of her perspective can be found here

Using a larger screen for marking using grademark, Dr Barbara Introwicz

In this recording (audio file) Dr Barbara Introwicz outlines how using a larger screen (24inch widescreen) aided her use of marking online using the Grademark facility. She explains how the new Grademark interface compares to the old interface and what particular developments to the system would be of benefit. Dr Barbara Introwicz typically marks around 50, 5000 word assignments (per module) online. Barbara has asked that the fantastic support of their e-learning fellow Mr Tim Smale be acknowledged and would like to thank him for his support in using Turnitin and Grademark.

Grademark: does it make the grade? Verity Aiken

I used Grademark to mark essay work submitted by Foundation Year students enrolled on a Criminology Study Skills module. I wanted to mark work in an ‘electronic’ format as part of a growing professional interest in learning and teaching technologies and as part of a research action project contributing to a ‘Learning and Teaching with Technology’ postgraduate certificate. Grademark was an obvious choice because it was already integrated in the Keele Learning Environment (KLE) making it readily accessible. It also meant that support for using this technology was easily available from within the University.

I used Grademark for 13 students who were all asked to submit two essays each. The online submission was convenient and meant that I could mark the essays from home or at work without the worry of transporting papers around with me. Grademark itself was easy to use and it did not take long to feel at ease working with it. You can use their pre-prepared comment bank or develop your own. I decided to create my own as I wanted the feedback to be personal and to be able to draw out the things that I thought were important. I developed my own comments as I marked student essays. After the first few, marking became speedier as I was often able to drag and drop comments relating to generic issues. As a result, I spent more time writing detailed entries on specific points relating to the argument because I was spending less time on generic issues relating to structure and style. Grademark also has other functions. You can import your own assessment criteria and you can supply the student with general comments in either text or audio form. From my own experience, I can only pinpoint one disadvantage when using this technology to mark student work. Grademark is an overlay and this feels slightly different to actually writing on text. You can score over words and highlight sections and link a comment bubble to it, but it stops short of interacting fully with the text. I am used to boxing up bits of text and using arrows to signify issues to do with structure or position and I missed being able to get amongst the text to do this.

Students reported very positive experiences of using Grademark. They saw it as a convenient way of submitting their work that involved less stress and panic. They also believed that it made them more likely to engage with feedback, giving the rationale that online feedback was inescapable. In contrast, they viewed ‘collecting’ work from on-campus as something that was easily avoidable. Overwhelmingly, students liked the clear, legible and detailed comments that Grademark provided. They noted that printed text was easy to read and without ambiguity. They also liked that the fact that the comment bubbles using ‘hover text’ technology were not limited in length or detail by the size of the margins on the paper.

Overall, my experience of using Grademark was very positive. The students who received their feedback from Grademark also liked it and reported several benefits. The only noticeable drawback I experienced was how Grademark functions as an ‘overlay’ and how this sometimes feels like a barrier from being able to fully interact with the text. That said, I would use Grademark again and much prefer the freedom that this ‘paperless’ technology brings. So for me, at least, Grademark does make the grade.




Verity Aiken

A reflective piece about using audio files for feedback, Louise Vincent

Louise Vincent used audio files to provide feedback to students on a BSc programme in Children's Nursing.  In this piece Louise explains audio feedback was chosen, the approach she took and what she found.  The full reflection can be found here

Audio feedback resource

What is audio feedback?

Audio feedback is using the spoken voice to provide feedback to students on formative or summative assessments. This could be general cohort level feedback or specific feedback to individuals.

Why use audio feedback?

Providing audio feedback to students can have a range of benefits for both the marker and student. One student notes “Audio feedback worked fine. I really liked feedback being presented in this way, and I feel I’ve got a lot more out of it than just reading a feedback sheet”

The main advantages for the student include

• Allowing for timely feedback
• Allowing for richer more detailed feedback to be produced, a lot more can be conveyed to a student in 5 minutes of speech than the equivalent written or typed.
• The feedback is more portable, it can easily be downloaded by the student and reused
• Evidence suggests that students feel feedback produced in this way is more personable and         understandable as the intonation of voice is clear.

Members of staff that have been using audio feedback noted that it allows them to provide richer more detailed feedback in the same amount of time as ‘normal’ written feedback. The main advantages for staff can include

• The ability to provide richer more detailed feedback
• When explaining complex concepts it is often easier and quicker to explain these verbally than to write them.
• It can take the same amount of time to produce more detailed feedback to students

How do I produce audio feedback?

The main methods of producing audio feedback include

• Using a digital voice recorder available from Audio Visual Services.
• Using the recording features built into your laptop, desktop PC or mobile device.

How do I deliver audio feedback?

Audio feedback can be delivered to students through the Institutional VLE for further details on how to do this please refer to http://www.keele.ac.uk/lpdc/learningandteaching/technologysupportingassessmentandfeedback/ and locate the ‘project STAF consultation paper’.

Tips for providing audio feedback

1. Make sure you are in quiet space
2. Turn off your phone
3. Prepare some notes or prompts for yourself before hand
4. If using a voice recorder make sure to make a note of the file number against the student number. This helps you to identify which file is for which student
5. For better audio quality use a microphone (available from the LPDC)
6. If you want to provide textual comments as well or follow a standard proforma, embed the audio file into a word doc (resources http://tinyurl.com/5sx8ual)
7. Try to keep the recording to about 5mins
8. Don’t feel your recording has to be perfect stumbles can add a human element.
9. Tell the students what you are doing and why

Resources and further information

• http://tinyurl.com/staffexperiences
• Bob Rotherham project sounds good.http://sites.google.com/site/soundsgooduk/
• AFAL project. http://sites.google.com/site/audiofeedbackuk/
• ASEL Project http://aselproject.wordpress.com
• JISC digital Media http://www.jiscdigitalmedia.ac.uk
• Project STAF blog http://tinyurl.com/5sx8ual
• http://www.enhancingfeedback.ed.ac.uk/staff/resources/newways.html

Screen-casting for feedback

What is screen capture or screen-casting?

Screen-casting is using software to record whatever you do on your computer screen, with your voice commentary, saved as a video file. You can use it to create feedback, talking to the student while showing on the screen their work in MSWord or in Turnitin’s Grademark. You can talk to the student(s) while pointing to parts of their work. You then send them the video file. The student work could have your comments or corrections on it and you could return that as well. A screen-cast could be used for general, cohort­-level feedback or for individuals. Screen-casting is increasingly used for educational purposes like feedback, providing short introductions to lectures, or demonstrating how to solve arithmetic problems.

Why use a screen-cast for feedback?
The advantages for the student

• Providing richer, more detailed feedback than text. A lot more can be conveyed in 5 minutes of speech   than feedback written in the same time.
• The feedback video file is portable, as it can be downloaded by the student and reused.
• Evidence suggests that students feel feedback produced in this way is more personal and understandable. Voice intonation adds information and difficult concepts can be conveyed more easily.
• Feedback produced in this way can produce more directed feedback; it can be easier to explain specific errors and improvements.

The main advantages for staff can include

• Members of staff who have used screen-casting for feedback noted that it allows them to provide richer, more detailed feedback.
• It is often easier and quicker to explain complex concepts verbally than in text.
• It can take no more time to produce more detailed feedback to students.
• Student will listen to it all, rather than skimming text.

You should deliver the files through the KLE, where you can control access and they are archived

How do I produce screen capture feedback?

You will need a microphone plugged into your desktop PC (laptops generally have one built-in.) Screen-cast software can be free (e.g. Jing, Screenr) or purchased. Suggestions can be found at http://projectstafkeeleuniversity.jiscinvolve.org/wp/

Tips for providing screen-cast feedback

1. Make sure you are in quiet space
2. Turn off your phone
3. Prepare some notes or prompts for yourself before hand
4. Make sure to save the file as the student number, to identify which file is for which student
5. For better audio quality use a microphone
6. If you want to provide textual comments as well or follow a standard proforma, embed the file into a word doc (resources http://tinyurl.com/5sx8ual)
7. Try to keep the recording to about 5-7mins (some free programs like Jing only allow 5 minutes)
8. Don’t feel your recording has to be perfect – small verbal stumbles add a human element
9. Use the Pause button to give yourself time to compose the next section
10. Start the recording with a header of module, assignment, student name etc.
11. Tell the students what you are doing and why.

Resources and further information

• http://tinyurl.com/staffexperiences
• Amber Regis screen-casts
• http://tinyurl.com/6ah4c7m
• Sheila Hope has a bioscience case study at
• http://tinyurl.com/6faujdh
• Russell Standard screen-casts 
• http://tinyurl.com/654g9mg
• http://tinyurl.com/russellstannard.com/
• JISC digital Media 
• http://www.jiscdigitalmedia.ac.uk
• Dr Dave McGarvey and Dr Katherine Haxton, 
• http://tinyurl.com/cm6no24

Grademark resource

What is Grademark?

Grademark is a digital mark-up tool which allows you to mark assignments through an online document viewer. This means that students can submit assignments and receive feedback through the KLE. Access to this tool is through the creation of a Turnitin assignment dropbox.

What does Grademark offer?

The mark up tools offered through Grademark can broadly be separated into two areas, marking features that annotate the assignment and marking features that can be used to provide feedback alongside these annotations. A numeric mark can also be entered alongside these features. The features within these areas are explained below,

Main features
Annotating the assignment 

• A range of pre-set floating comments (Quickmarks) can be dragged and dropped on to the assignment.   These pre-set comments are customisable and you can create your own. Quickmarks can also be exported and shared between markers.
• You can type comments directly on to the assignment.
• You can highlight text in different colours, linking a comment to the highlighted text. This is useful for multiple markers
• You can strikethrough text, and add comments to this action

Features for feedback alongside annotations

• You can provide short audio feedback, the students can listen to this whilst reading feedback on their assignment
• There is a specific general comments area to add additional comments and you can also copy and paste text into this area
• Both quantitative and qualitative rubrics can be developed, which can be exported and shared with other tutors.

In addition to the features above Grademark has a reporting function built into it. This reporting function gives you details about the frequency of use in relation to the comments (Quickmarks) you have used and more detailed statistics in relation to the assignment. This information can be downloaded to a spread sheet

Why should I use Grademark?

Grademark can be useful for staff and students for a number of reasons. Using Grademark allows for feedback to be delivered to students automatically as students are submitting and collecting feedback from one central point, the KLE. Staff can work more flexibly as assignments are stored in a central point and accessed via the internet. Less paper needs to be processed and stored.

Tips for providing feedback using Grademark

1. Build your own bank of comments (Quickmarks) gradually
2. Try using Grademark with a small number of assignments at first
3. Tell the students what you are doing
4. Rather than replicating your paper marking style try and think what the tools offers you.
5. The statistical reporting features could be used to help determine future interventions
6. The assignment inbox displays an icon once a student has accessed the feedback for longer than 30 seconds
7. Remember rubrics and comments (Quickmarks) can be shared
8. Descriptions can be added to comments (Quickmarks)
9. Familarise yourself with the system, look at www.keele.ac.uk/lpdc for details about workshops
10. Firefox is the recommended web browser to use when using Grademark. A list of supported browsers is here http://tinyurl.com/Grademark-Browsers
11. Try it out

Resources and further information

• http://tinyurl.com/staffexperiences
• http://tinyurl.com/tips-CathEllis
• http://turnitin.com/en_us/products/grademark
• http://www.keele.ac.uk/turnitin (A Keele support site)
• http://tinyurl.com/qzcpwh2 (webcasts offered through Turnitin they are free)
• http://tinyurl.com/qg2olsf ( an overview of the features of Grademark)
• http://tinyurl.com/76y4h6l (An interactive Grademark tutorial)
• http://tinyurl.com/cuh2yob (More detailed instructions on using Grademark)

Welcome

Welcome to the LPDC solutions blog, this case studies section provides accounts of the teaching and learning experiences of other members of staff

To return to the Learning and Professional Development Centre website follow this link http://www.keele.ac.uk/lpdc/solutions/