Tag: feedback

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Just another student survey? – Point-of-contact survey feedback enhances the student experience and lets researchers gather data

Author: Warren Lake, William Boyd, Wendy Boyd and Suzi Hellmundt

Southern Cross University

Edition: Volume 57, Number 1, April 2017

Summary: When student surveys are conducted within university environments, one outcome of feedback to the researcher is that it provides insight into the potential ways that curriculum can be modified and how content can be better delivered. However, the benefit to the current students undertaking the survey is not always evident. By modifying Biggs’ revised two-factor study process questionnaire (R-SPQ-2F), we have provided students with immediate point-of-contact feedback that encourages students to consider their own cognitive processes. The main purpose of the modified tool is to provide immediate benefit to the student, whilst retaining the functionality of the survey for the researcher. Two versions of the survey were presented to students, a feedback version and non-feedback version, with results indicating that the participants of the feedback version had a significantly higher opinion that the survey helped them to be a better learner. In general, the importance students place on feedback, regardless of the version of the survey completed, was evident in the study. The point-of-contact survey model implemented in this study has successfully allowed a tool that was once exclusively researcher focused to be oriented towards current students, introducing an additional layer of feedback, which directly benefits the current student, whilst retaining its usefulness as a diagnostic research tool.

Keywords: Feedback, survey feedback, student feedback, point-of-contact feedback, immediate feedback, R-SPQ-2F

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This article is part of AJAL, Volume 57_1. The entire volume is available in .pdf for purchase here.

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Leadership developmental needs – a system for identifying them

Author/s: Marjatta Takala, David Winegar and Jorma Kuusela

Edition: Volume 49, Number 1, April 2009

Summary: This study is an evaluation of the developmental needs of business leaders. Altogether, 190 leaders, representing 22 nationalities, participated in 12 four-day training sessions. The first aim of this study was to identify the key developmental concerns of leaders; the second was to determine what kinds of training methods the leaders preferred; and the third was to design a form that could be used for further training. Fourteen developmental areas were identified.  The key areas that needed development were related to Interaction, Coaching, Giving and Receiving Feedback, and Everyday Work Skills. Artificial experience building and tailor-made training were preferred over lecturing. In further training, activating methods need to be used and demographics taken into consideration.

Keywords: developmental needs, leaders, training methods, coaching, feedback

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This article is part of AJAL, Volume 49_1. The entire volume is available in .pdf for purchase here.

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Study circles and the Dialogue to Change Program

Author/s: Mary Brennan and Mark Brophy

Edition: Volume 50, Number 2, July 2010

Summary: The origins of study circles can be traced back to the Chautauqua movement in the USA in the late nineteenth century. However, interest diminished in the USA and the Swedes discovered and enthusiastically imported the study circle idea as a remedy to their problems of poverty and illiteracy and to educate the broadest possible spectrum of society in the art of democracy. Over the next 100 years, Sweden developed the process to such an extent that the Government now subsidises this form of education and uses it not only to educate people about government policies, but to receive feedback from the public.

Keywords: study circles, change, feedback, public

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This article is part of AJAL, Volume 50_2. The entire volume is available in .pdf for purchase here.