First-Year Engineering Team Responses to Feedback on Their Mathematical Models - A Video Study

High quality formative feedback is an integral component of a fruitful learning experience. Pedagogical approaches are needed to increase the quality of instructor feedback and train students to interpret and appropriately respond to feedback. To develop research-informed approaches, students’ thinking from receipt of feedback to action can be explored through an analysis of documented works, such as written feedback and students’ iterative solutions. However, such approaches do not reveal the whole story of their interactions with feedback.The purpose of this study is to explore student team responses to teaching assistants’ (TAs’) written feedback while revising their mathematical model. The research question that guides this study is: How do student teams respond to feedback and convey their ideas from their team discussions in their documented works? We report case findings from two first-year engineering student teams’ responses to TA feedback on a Model-Eliciting Activity (MEA). The teams were videotaped while working to revise their draft. The findings from this data are supported by documented works (written feedback and students’ iterative solutions) along with student interviews. In trying to understand the complexity of students’ learning experience, this study provides insights into how students respond to TA feedback, specifically how they interpret feedback, budget time, and effectively report the outcomes of team discussion. Moreover, findings imply that TAs need to better identify misconceptions and target feedback appropriately.