Receiving and Using Feedback In An Online Learning Environment

Last week, I posted a description of an assessment I created for Google Classroom. This was part of an assignment for CEP 813 requiring the exploration of a Content Management System (CMS) we never used before and the creation of a sample assessment that resided completely within that CMS. I chose to explore Google Classroom because, even though I had never used it, Google Classroom is commonly used in schools around the world and appeared to have the affordances necessary to accommodate the kind of assessment I had in mind. As part of that assignment, we received feedback from our instructor and a peer.  This post is a reflection of my experience receiving feedback in an asynchronous online setting.

Receiving feedback can be a nervous experience for me. On the one hand, I want to hear what others' think and make good use of their suggestions, and on the other hand, I don't want to hear their feedback just in case they hated my creation. Happily, in this course, everyone is an educator of one type or another and so everyone has had practice providing feedback that is both encouraging and constructive. Generally, the feedback I have received from in this course and other MAET courses starts with a description of what the reviewer liked or noticed, and then goes on to offer a suggestion or two for how to improve. This is a very easy and useful way to receive feedback, and, at least for me, reduces the nervousness associated with finding out what another person thinks of something I created and encourages me to work to improve.

One thing I miss about receiving feedback from an asynchronous online classmate is the personal connection and ability to ask clarifying questions in the moment afforded by in-person learning and synchronous remote situations. In addition, in an in-person setting, any feedback partner I have would probably be somewhat familiar to me, so I would have some idea of the person's background and experience and be able to use that familiarity to put their comments into context. In an online asynchronous format, the "relationship" element between the reviewer and the reviewee can be missing, which, for me, results in feedback that feels a little distant.

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