Feedback and Automated Feedback: Practices and Perceptions of University Faculty

Abstract

The present research examines feedback practices, with particular emphasis on automated feedback systems, adopted by university lecturers at three Italian universities involved in a National Research Project of Relevant Interest (PRIN). Through the analysis of 670 syllabi and the conduct of three focus groups, the research addresses two key questions: what feedback and automated feedback practices are reported in the syllabi?; how is feedback, including automated feedback, defined and utilised by lecturers? The syllabi analysis shows that 100% of lecturers use product-based assessment, while only 25.8% also adopt process-based assessment; none employ progress-based assessment. The predominant assessment practices are oral and written final exams. Only 9.71% of lecturers report using feedback practices, with an almost non-existent use of automated feedback (.14%). The focus group findings further highlight that direct interaction between students and lecturers is considered crucial in the feedback process, with in-class discussions being the preferred method, while knowledge and use of automated feedback are extremely limited. These results confirm the prevalence of traditional assessment approaches and resistance to adopting new technologies, in line with existing literature. However, they contrast with recommendations stressing the need to implement automated feedback systems to monitor students’ learning processes and progress, and more importantly, to provide timely feedback that enables students to refine their strategies. In this context, the PRIN project is particularly relevant, as it seeks to provide a method, a user-friendly interface, and tutorials for using Machine Learning to generate high-quality feedback.