Technology-enhanced feedback in higher education: Source-recipient relationships in a new dialogic feedback paradigm

Abstract

Higher education institutions (HEIs) have been required to abruptly move their education online in response to recent events. Prior to these challenging events, the twenty-first century was already bringing an increased emergence of new digital tools which have begun to profoundly change higher education.Technology has always existed as a disrupter. The danger is that rapid uptake to online maintains the status quo. This conceptual article will examine the shift from feedback as one-way transmission to two-way Socratic, sustainable learning conversations. It is widely recognised that students consistently report that feedback is provided sub-standardly in higher education. New paradigm approaches to feedback aim to utilise interrogative feedback and Socratic discussion to facilitate a change in output (e.g. feedback uptake). The objective of feedback is to advise, encourage and improve output. The article aims to explore the potential for technology to enhance relational dimensions of teaching practice. The intention is of this work is to serve as a clarion call for intentionally designed digital feedback tools and processes that move beyond technology as yet another means of domineered telling but to aim to empower and provide opportunities for students to respond.The key is to empower institutions and therefore academics to reap the transformative benefits of digital innovation and encourage Socratic, sustainable and dialogic feedback through re-examining the relational dimensions of tutor/teacher relationships.