SDU Universitetspædagogik

Actors: Peer assessment
Type: Project work, solving assignments

	Annemari Munk Svendsen,  Teaching Assistant Professor Department of Sports Science and Clinical Biomechanics Faculty of Health Sciences
	Mads Hovgaard,  Academic Administrative Officer Department of Sports Science and Clinical Biomechanics Faculty of Health Sciences

The feedback activity in brief
This feedback activity is a game, which has been applied as part of the supervision for bachelor projects and as part of the teaching activities. The students provide each other with peer assessment on assignments or bachelor projects during the game.

Application
The game is applied as a new method of supervising bachelor students in Sports and Health. The students work in groups of 3-6 people and provide each other with feedback on assignments. The supervisor observes and supervises the process. 

The game was also applied in Mads Hovgaard’s teaching in the Sports and Health study programme during the second quarter module “Videnskabelig Undersøgelse, Informationssøgning og Opgaveskrivning” (Scientific research, information retrieval and writing of assignments). Mads taught two classes of approximately 25 students each.

The actual activity and its extent
Mads Hovgaard developed the feedback game based on inspiration from the text feedback game from Aarhus University, as well as experiences and elements from Cooperative Learning. The game consists of a game board and different coloured bricks (e.g. Lego bricks) for each student to move around on the game board. One of the students is to take the role as leader of the group. Everyone in the group take turns placing theur brick in the centre of the game board. The student whose brick is in the centre will receive feedback on his or her assignment from the rest of the group. According to the rules the student with the brick in the centre of the game board must keep silent while receiving the feedback. Hence, the student learns to listen to the feedback and not just defend him- or herself. Simultaneously the other students learn to provide constructive feedback. When everyone has received feedback the game can finish with comments on the feedback received from each student, perhaps the teacher/supervisor also has some comments to the feedback. It is also possible to do a recap round, to sum up how the process went, and whether the feedback was constructive or not.

It is necessary to have rooms in which the students can sit in groups and play the game. Additional it is necessary to have a game board and bricks/pieces for everyone in the group, preferably in different colours.

Experiences and assessment
The supervisors who have tried the game think it is a bit complex in the beginning because they are not allowed to talk much. They should focus on listening to the feedback that the students give to each other. It makes the supervision job different but also easier for some.

The students like this type of feedback. However, it can be problematic to play the game if some students do not show up or they are not prepared. The game requires commited students, and most students find the game exciting. After some time more students stopped using the game board and bricks, because they had learned to provide and receive feedback. However, it is very useful for implementing structured feedback.

Evaluation: in which contexts will you recommend this feedback activity?

For more information about VUF please contact:
SDU Centre for Teaching and Learning - Rie Troelsen - riet@sdu.dk

For more information about this feedback activity please contact: 
Annemari Svendsen - amsvendsen@health.sdu.dk
Mads Hovgaard - mhovgaard@health.sdu.dk