Feedback on assessment

‘Feedback’ at a University level can be understood as any part of the learning process which is designed to guide your progress through your degree programme by providing commentary on your work to date. We aim to help you reflect on your own learning and help you feel clearer about your progress through clarifying what is expected of you in both formative and summative assessments.

A comprehensive guide to feedback and to forms of feedback is available in the Guide to Assessment, Standards, Marking and Feedback.

For summative pieces of work submitted to the VLE via Turnitin Feedback Studio, feedback will usually be made available through this alongside your raw mark. Please be aware that if you submit your work late your feedback may not be available to the usual timeframes due to markers having to fit adjusted marking deadlines round previously scheduled responsibilities.

Departmental statement on feedback

The purpose of providing feedback to you on your progress in relation to formative and summative assessments is to facilitate improvement through reflection and promote learning. Feedback can also be a means of helping you to understand why you have been awarded a particular grade, especially in relation to summative assessment.

Feedback could be the provision of either constructive comments or a model solution. Feedback, where possible and appropriate, should link explicitly with the Assessment Guideline and the Marking Criteria.

Feedback should demonstrate the following characteristics:

• be clear and unambiguous

• strike a balance between being constructive, encouraging and motivating, and providing explicit comment on where there are failings and how improvements can be made

• be specific and focussed to the content and context in which it is given

• be actionable – feedback that you can act upon

• be tailored to the needs of the individual student

• reflect/support the mark/grade awarded.

Formative assessments

Each module you undertake on the programme has a formative assessment and a summative assessment. Formative assessments have a developmental purpose designed to help you learn more effectively by providing feedback on your performance and how it can be improved and/or maintained. Summative assessments are designed to evaluate the extent of your learning at the end of a module against the module learning outcomes.

You will receive feedback on your formative assessments which can support you in preparing for the summative assessment.

Feedback on draft dissertations

Your supervisor will respond to specific questions on your draft dissertation, for example referencing, structure, construction of argument etc. When requesting feedback, you should be specific about which aspects of your draft work you would like feedback on, for example level of critical analysis or appropriate use of source material.

Usually no work will be seen in the seven working days prior to the submission date. Work will not be seen unless you have previously negotiated this with your supervisor.

Examples of how to, and how not to, pose questions on your draft work are provided below:

• Am I on the right track?

This question is not specific enough. A simple yes or no will not give you the feedback you require to strengthen your academic work. 

• Please can you comment on the construction of my argument?

• Please could you give me feedback on my referencing style, is it accurate and consistent? 

These questions are specific and the feedback can be tailored to address your strengths and limitations

• Will this pass?

Your supervisor cannot respond to this question as your supervisor is there to provide formative feedback and guidance on draft work. When reviewing a draft assignment your supervisor is not marking the assignment and as such cannot offer an indication of final mark. 

• Can you proofread this?

• Please can you check the spelling and grammar?

• Can you edit this?

• I'm over the word limit, what can I take out?

It is not the responsibility of your supervisor to proofread and edit your assignments. You supervisor is there to offer general feedback about your academic writing style. It would be acceptable to phrase a question along the lines of…. 

• Please can you review this particular paragraph and provide feedback regarding my academic writing style: is it appropriate?

• I've tried to write this direct quote in my own words, have I accurately represented the author's point?

• Have I developed a reasoned, logical argument?

• You keep telling me my writing is descriptive but I don't know how to change it. I've provided a section of my assignment: can you give me specific feedback on this issue?

These questions are deemed to be appropriate questions to accompany a draft assignment when seeking feedback from your supervisor, as these are specific and relate to the relevant marking criteria. 

Communication of marks and feedback

Marks and written feedback will be released to you within twenty working days of the date of submission or examination. Full details of dates are found on your programme Assessment Schedule.

For work submitted through Turnitin, your raw mark (subject to the ratification process) and associated feedback will be made available to you on the deadline release date through your submission on Turnitin. Please be aware that this raw mark will not reflect any associated late submission penalties. Your final mark (subject to ratification) with any associated deductions or penalties applied will be the mark visible through your e:Vision ‘view my results’ section. The e:Vision result is the mark that will contribute to your progression and award calculation.

Assessment marks for work not submitted through Turnitin will be released to you through your e:Vision account. In addition to the marks, individual written feedback will be provided to you for every piece of summatively assessed work, with the exception of examinations.

To provide a consistent approach, the Department has standard feedback forms relevant to your programme.

For examinations you will be provided with general cohort feedback, giving details of how the cohort performed as a whole in the exam.

If there was an unavoidable delay in releasing your marks by the date indicated on the Assessment Schedule you will be notified, by email to your University email account, regarding the delay and when the marks will be available.

All marks are provisional until after ratification by the Board of Examiners. This may either be at a meeting or they may be approved on Chair’s Action.

In addition, your feedback may be provided verbally. Verbal feedback can be on a one-to-one basis with an academic member of staff or delivered to you on a group basis.

The Department does not consider requests from individual students or groups of students for the early marking and/or early release of marks. 

Results for modules with multiple assessments

For modules with more than one assessed component you need to check your mark for each part of the assessment via your e:Vision account. You may have failed one component but the overall mark may still show as a pass mark. It is therefore vital that you check you have passed each part of the assessment, where this is a requirement.

Access to marked exam scripts

You may request to view your marked examination script. You can initiate this request through your personal supervisor who would negotiate a time for you both to review this together.

The script may not be copied or taken away with you, and can only be viewed with a member of academic staff present.

Further information can be found on the Exams web pages.