Understanding feedback in online learning – A critical review and metaphor analysis

Jensen, LX; Bearman, M; Boud, D

Understanding feedback in online learning – A critical review and metaphor analysis

Jensen, LX Bearman, M Boud, D

Permalink

Publisher:: PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Computers and Education, 2021, 173
Issue Date:: 2021-11-01

Closed Access

	Filename	Description	Size
	Accepted Understanding feedback in online learning.pdf	Accepted version	331.91 kB	Adobe PDF	View/Open

Copyright Clearance Process

Recently Added
In Progress
Closed Access

This item is closed access and not available.

Full metadata record

Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Jensen, LX
dc.contributor.author	Bearman, M
dc.contributor.author	Boud, D https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6883-2722
dc.date.accessioned	2021-11-13T06:47:07Z
dc.date.available	2021-11-13T06:47:07Z
dc.date.issued	2021-11-01
dc.identifier.citation	Computers and Education, 2021, 173
dc.identifier.issn	0360-1315
dc.identifier.issn	1873-782X
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/151551
dc.description.abstract	Technologies associated with online learning have led to many new feedback practices and expanded the meaning of feedback beyond the traditional focus on instructor comments, but conceptual work on online feedback has not followed. This paper investigates how online learning researchers understand feedback's role in teaching and learning, and discusses how these understandings influence what research questions are asked, and what online feedback practices are recommended. Through a qualitative analysis of the language used about feedback in leading research journals, we identified six distinct understandings of feedback based on six dominant conceptual metaphors. These are feedback is a treatment, feedback is a costly commodity, feedback is coaching, feedback is a command, feedback is a dialogue, and feedback is a learner tool. Each of these metaphors offers a coherent frame of entailments related to the roles and responsibilities of online instructors and online learners as well as some bigger assumptions about what role feedback should play in online teaching and learning. A comparison with current feedback research revealed that just two of the six metaphors align with the learner-centric feedback practices that are increasingly considered appropriate among feedback researchers. The paper discusses how the conceptualizations might reflect different challenges facing online education. The paper proposes that researchers interrogate their own conceptualizations to ensure that they align with their beliefs about feedback and its role in the learning process. It suggests that a more deliberate use of metaphors when conceptualizing feedback and online feedback practices is necessary for clarity of communication and helpful for driving the work on feedback in online learning forward.
dc.language	English
dc.publisher	PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
dc.relation.ispartof	Computers and Education
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1016/j.compedu.2021.104271
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/closedAccess
dc.subject	1301 Education Systems, 1302 Curriculum and Pedagogy, 1303 Specialist Studies in Education
dc.subject.classification	Education
dc.title	Understanding feedback in online learning – A critical review and metaphor analysis
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	173
utslib.for	1301 Education Systems
utslib.for	1302 Curriculum and Pedagogy
utslib.for	1303 Specialist Studies in Education
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences/FASS Faculty Administration
utslib.copyright.status	closed_access	*
dc.date.updated	2021-11-13T06:47:06Z
pubs.publication-status	Published
pubs.volume	173

Abstract:

Technologies associated with online learning have led to many new feedback practices and expanded the meaning of feedback beyond the traditional focus on instructor comments, but conceptual work on online feedback has not followed. This paper investigates how online learning researchers understand feedback's role in teaching and learning, and discusses how these understandings influence what research questions are asked, and what online feedback practices are recommended. Through a qualitative analysis of the language used about feedback in leading research journals, we identified six distinct understandings of feedback based on six dominant conceptual metaphors. These are feedback is a treatment, feedback is a costly commodity, feedback is coaching, feedback is a command, feedback is a dialogue, and feedback is a learner tool. Each of these metaphors offers a coherent frame of entailments related to the roles and responsibilities of online instructors and online learners as well as some bigger assumptions about what role feedback should play in online teaching and learning. A comparison with current feedback research revealed that just two of the six metaphors align with the learner-centric feedback practices that are increasingly considered appropriate among feedback researchers. The paper discusses how the conceptualizations might reflect different challenges facing online education. The paper proposes that researchers interrogate their own conceptualizations to ensure that they align with their beliefs about feedback and its role in the learning process. It suggests that a more deliberate use of metaphors when conceptualizing feedback and online feedback practices is necessary for clarity of communication and helpful for driving the work on feedback in online learning forward.

Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:

http://hdl.handle.net/10453/151551