Tutor feedback during teaching practice : a look at official documents and students' views

Abstract

Work Group 2 has been assigned the task of exploring the Quality of Feedback given to BEd students during Teaching Practice (TP). It was agreed that different sub-groups of Work Group 2 tackle the issue of TP feedback quality from a variety of perspectives. The remit in our case has been threefold: (i) to unpack the term ‘feedback’; (ii) to consider how ‘feedback’ features in Faculty and University documents; and (iii) to delve into how students experience the feedback they receive while out on TP and to give voice to any suggestions they might have in this regard. Toward this end, this report begins by discussing the concept of feedback in support of learning, which we’re taking to signal the type of feedback embraced by the Faculty (see Assessment Guidelines, 2006), and how such feedback features, if at all, in official documentation at Faculty and University levels. After discussing the methodology used to gather students’ views on TP feedback, we present the results. In the final section of the report we refer back to the results with a view of opening up the discussion as to how the quality of feedback given to students can be improved in order to enhance further their TP experience.