Learning from feedback in college courses: Student beliefs, practices, and preferences

Students receive different types of task- and process-level feedback in educational settings, but it is unclear how they perceive and use these different types of feedback they receive. In a broad and representative survey, 378 students answered questions about their experiences with feedback in college courses, their perceptions of the feedback, and the regulatory and motivational strategies they used to learn from it. On average, students reported receiving feedback on three different types of tasks in a course and the nature of the feedback differed by task. Although some student practices in processing feedback were uniform across types of tasks and feedback, other practices varied markedly. Students reported that they highly valued all feedback, but believed its utility declined over time and preferred immediate feedback. This study provides novel insights into student beliefs and preferences regarding feedback and the regulatory and motivational practices that they use to learn from feedback.