An articulated approach to the development and evaluation of automated feedback for online MCQ quizzes in Human Biology

This paper describes an articulated programme of development and evaluation of automatically-presented explanatory feedback comments for online, enriched-multiple choice style quizzes in Human Biology for first year university courses. The degree of articulation of the separate components of the pro...

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Main Authors: Meyer, J., Fyfe, Susan, Fyfe, Georgina, Ziman, M., Plastow, K., Sanders, K., Hill, Julie
Other Authors: K Placing
Format: Conference Paper
Published: UniServe Science 2007
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/41092
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author Meyer, J.
Fyfe, Susan
Fyfe, Georgina
Ziman, M.
Plastow, K.
Sanders, K.
Hill, Julie
author2 K Placing
author_facet K Placing
Meyer, J.
Fyfe, Susan
Fyfe, Georgina
Ziman, M.
Plastow, K.
Sanders, K.
Hill, Julie
author_sort Meyer, J.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description This paper describes an articulated programme of development and evaluation of automatically-presented explanatory feedback comments for online, enriched-multiple choice style quizzes in Human Biology for first year university courses. The degree of articulation of the separate components of the programme arose almost unintentionally from the inclusion of common sets of demographic questions in several of the components of the work, and fromcontinuity of logon identities, but proved to be a powerful means of reaching an understanding of the dynamics of student engagement with the online learning process and of the effectiveness of the product we were testing. In particular, links were established between expectations of academic performance and the amount of paid employment in which students were engaged, and between expected and achieved levels of performance. Students who expected lower levels ofperformance at the outset were also less convinced of the potential of feedback to help them with their studies. Analysis of the patterns of use of the online test revealed a serious disadvantage to working students of current accessibility to online summative assessments, and that the standard duration of the summative tests was approximately three times the preferred online work span of the younger students. ‘Dose’ and ‘decay’-graded selective improvements in end of semester assessments in the topics covered by the feedback comments could be demonstrated.
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format Conference Paper
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institution Curtin University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T09:06:00Z
publishDate 2007
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-410922017-01-30T14:48:08Z An articulated approach to the development and evaluation of automated feedback for online MCQ quizzes in Human Biology Meyer, J. Fyfe, Susan Fyfe, Georgina Ziman, M. Plastow, K. Sanders, K. Hill, Julie K Placing This paper describes an articulated programme of development and evaluation of automatically-presented explanatory feedback comments for online, enriched-multiple choice style quizzes in Human Biology for first year university courses. The degree of articulation of the separate components of the programme arose almost unintentionally from the inclusion of common sets of demographic questions in several of the components of the work, and fromcontinuity of logon identities, but proved to be a powerful means of reaching an understanding of the dynamics of student engagement with the online learning process and of the effectiveness of the product we were testing. In particular, links were established between expectations of academic performance and the amount of paid employment in which students were engaged, and between expected and achieved levels of performance. Students who expected lower levels ofperformance at the outset were also less convinced of the potential of feedback to help them with their studies. Analysis of the patterns of use of the online test revealed a serious disadvantage to working students of current accessibility to online summative assessments, and that the standard duration of the summative tests was approximately three times the preferred online work span of the younger students. ‘Dose’ and ‘decay’-graded selective improvements in end of semester assessments in the topics covered by the feedback comments could be demonstrated. 2007 Conference Paper http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/41092 UniServe Science restricted
spellingShingle Meyer, J.
Fyfe, Susan
Fyfe, Georgina
Ziman, M.
Plastow, K.
Sanders, K.
Hill, Julie
An articulated approach to the development and evaluation of automated feedback for online MCQ quizzes in Human Biology
title An articulated approach to the development and evaluation of automated feedback for online MCQ quizzes in Human Biology
title_full An articulated approach to the development and evaluation of automated feedback for online MCQ quizzes in Human Biology
title_fullStr An articulated approach to the development and evaluation of automated feedback for online MCQ quizzes in Human Biology
title_full_unstemmed An articulated approach to the development and evaluation of automated feedback for online MCQ quizzes in Human Biology
title_short An articulated approach to the development and evaluation of automated feedback for online MCQ quizzes in Human Biology
title_sort articulated approach to the development and evaluation of automated feedback for online mcq quizzes in human biology
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/41092