Student perceptions of screencast feedback on mathematics assessment

Although feedback is a very important component of assessment in higher education, there is substantial evidence that students view traditional methods of feedback as deficient in a number of respects. In this paper we explore how students perceive generic feedback on a mathematics assignment provided via screencasts. Our study is based on a Differential Equations module taught to first and second year students at a United Kingdom university. Our analysis of a student survey of this novel approach to feedback indicates that some students prefer screencast feedback to written feedback for a number of reasons: it is perceived to be more personal, it provides a richer experience than handwritten comments, it can be accessed anytime and replayed and paused as needed, it assists with learning how to communicate mathematics and it helps develop mathematical thinking skills. In fact, we show that this form of feedback is effective according to Sadler’s (Instructional Science 18:119–144, 1989) definition of effective feedback.