Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

by Daniel Bailey -
Number of replies: 12

Hello everyone,

I have been using moodle extensively in my S. Korean EFL courses. I'm doing some action research which tracks writing quality when direct corrective feedback is delivered through task-based writing assignments via forums and blogs.

My question is this. What options are out there for delivering direct corrective feedback to students regarding their forum and blog contributions?

As of now, I am copying and pasting their writing passages onto Microsoft Word, applying the error tracking function, than saving those corrections to a PDF file which I send back to the student. Students then rewrite their passage (taking corrective feedback and comments into account) onto their moodle portfolio.


Is there a way to apply direct corrective feedback within the moodle text editor (skipping Microsoft Word)? I know there is the cross-out icon and highting options on the moodle text editor, but those options are time consuming compared to Microsoft Word's error tracking function.

If their isn't  anything like Microsoft's error tracking (review) function able to be patched into the text editor,  would anybody like to join me on a module development project? I think many instructors and students could benefit from a forum/blog activity module that allows for direct corrective feedback to EFL learners.








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In reply to Daniel Bailey

Re: Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

by Visvanath Ratnaweera -
Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Translators
Did you see these?
- "Moodle tip: Writing collaboratively in Moodle"
https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=310813

- "Moodle tip: Essay writing in Moodle"
https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=283822

P.S. What is behind the huge blank space below your post? Created by Microsoft Word?
;-')
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In reply to Visvanath Ratnaweera

Re: Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

by Daniel Bailey -

Thanks,

Those were both informative threads. I would like something similar to Microsoft's Word tracking mode inserted into moodles' text editor box. This would circumvent time-consuming file sharing steps.  It's a high order and I don't expect it anytime soon. I think this would be beneficial for providing direct corrective feedback in blog or forum postings. It would also be valuable for providing feedback to essay questions. 

I think the extra spaces on my previous post were a result of double posting. I also inquired towards corrective feedback methods in the Moodle Research forum thread. I'm hoping to collaborate with some possible developers on putting together a patch to moodle's text editor which could allow instructors to provide explicit feedback to students within the text editor box. Perhaps something like ghost editor, but within the text editor box instead of a PDF file. Having students save short passages on PDF files is a tall order in my classroom. I'm lucky to get them to the forums or blogs.

I hope to keep this conversation going. Corrective feedback on writing works, and students in Pacific Asian countries like Korea benefit greatly from it. Sadly, EFL instructors have a difficult time justifying the time requirement necessary to deliver feedback on writing.  I'm hoping to mitigate those time demands with more efficient teaching strategies using CMS like Moodle.


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In reply to Daniel Bailey

Re: Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

by Daniel Bailey -

 For now with regards to providing feedback, I am content with copying group discussion threads onto word documents, correcting mistakes using MS Word, saving to PDF, and uploading the PDF to the original forum thread.

It seems a next step in moodle evolution would be to have that corrective feedback process take place within the moodle platform.



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In reply to Daniel Bailey

Re: Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

by AL Rachels -
Picture of Core developers Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Plugin developers Picture of Testers
Hi Daniel,
Maybe I don't understand what you want in the end, but it seems to me that you should be able, as a teacher, to just go edit the students forum entries directly. You can line out what is wrong and type in the correction either with a different font color or different colored background.

AL

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In reply to AL Rachels

Re: Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

by Daniel Bailey -

Hello Al,


Your suggested method works, but I find it a bit time consuming. It would be great if I could use the red text to direct the reader's attention to their mistakes without having to re-click the  red text icon each time I use it within the same passage. Perhaps there is some way to lock the text color on red so I don't have to re-click the red-text icon each time I move the cursor to a different location within the same writing passage.

I will revisit the use of the present correctiv feedback tools available. 

I appreciate your help.

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In reply to Daniel Bailey

Re: Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

by AL Rachels -
Picture of Core developers Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Plugin developers Picture of Testers

Hi Daniel,

From grading MANY essays, short stories, and school newspaper articles over the years, which is really tough for me as technically I'm a math teacher, any corrective feedback is going to be "a bit time consuming." sad

Yesterday I was setting up a Moodle 2.9 devlopment site and was adding ANY plugin that I thought me be "interesting" to try out, when I came across the Corrections plugin for the Atto editor. I really wish that I had known about it sooner.

It comes with these types already in it:

a = plurialization
c = conjugation
d = determinant
g = grammar/syntax
m = missing word(s)
o = orthograph
p = preposition
t = tense
v = vocabulary
... = punctuation
? = other

AND it will let you add other symbols as needed. I have been digging thorough the Character Map from Windows Accessories and adding the letters for all the correction symbols I can find and know that I normally need.

The nice thing about this plugin, is the original text is still readable, but with the correction sysmbols you added, automatically showing up in red. When anyone hovers their mouse over the marks, it will pop up any correction text or comment you may have typed in. I've included the same forum entry from above showing the correction plugin in use. The only problem I see is the added superscript gets it's top shaved off.

HTH,

AL


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In reply to Daniel Bailey

Re: Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

by Matt Bury -
Picture of Plugin developers

Hi Daniel,

Feedback in Moodle for writing assignments is usually implemented using the assignment module. I've used it with the submission type set to inline text so that everything is kept within Moodle and so that everything is editable in Moodle; no Word docs, issues with different versions of word, or read-only PDF formats.

I wrote an article on how to use the Glossary module and "correction codes" to provide an easy and convenient way to give specific, explicit form-focused corrective feedback in glossary pop-ups: http://blog.matbury.com/2012/03/01/using-moodle-for-written-corrective-feedback/ This will work anywhere that Moodle's glossary auto-linking text filter works.

For an even more automated way to give explicit form-focused corrective feedback, or even for learners to use this service for themselves so that you can spend more time on giving feedback on the content of what learners are writing, there's Virtual Writing Tutor specifically designed for ESL and FSL learners by Nick Walker (great guy to work with) at Ahuntsic College in Montreal, Quebec, Canada: http://virtualwritingtutor.com/

I hope this helps! smile

BTW, you might find this paper about corrective feedback interesting:

Lundstrom, K., & Baker, W. (2009). To give is better than to receive: The benefits of peer review to the reviewer’s own writing. Journal of Second Language Writing, 18(1), 30–43. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2008.06.002
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In reply to Matt Bury

Re: Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

by Daniel Bailey -

Hello Matt,

I'm very familiar with your work. I went through the videos you posted with Rod Ellis. They were very helpful.

Are you able to share your glossary?

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In reply to Daniel Bailey

Re: Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

by Visvanath Ratnaweera -
Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Translators
I know how useful the "track changes" mode in word processing is. BTW, LibreOffice has that too. Look under > Edit > Changes > Record.

No, I don't know how to do that in the HTML editor in Moodle.

FYI: What Moodle calles https://docs.moodle.org/en/Text_editors are in fact http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTML_editors. A http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Text_editor is something completely different.

=== Alice quote: Painting the roses red ===
`Would you tell me,' said Alice, a little timidly, `why you are painting those roses?'

Five and Seven said nothing, but looked at Two. Two began in a low voice, `Why the fact is, you see, Miss, this here ought to have been a red rose-tree, and we put a white one in by mistake; and if the Queen was to find it out, we should all have our heads cut off, you know. So you see, Miss, we're doing our best, afore she comes, to--' At this moment Five, who had been anxiously looking across the garden, called out `The Queen! The Queen!' and the three gardeners instantly threw themselves flat upon their faces.
=== https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~rgs/alice-VIII.html ===
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In reply to Visvanath Ratnaweera

Re: Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

by Mary Cooch -
Picture of Documentation writers Picture of Moodle HQ Picture of Particularly helpful Moodlers Picture of Testers Picture of Translators
Hello Daniel. I deleted your new discussion from the the Research forum (although I kept your reply )as it's preferable not to duplicate threads. I also agree tracking changes is useful. Not quite the same but have you used the Pdf upload assignment type - standard since Moodle 2.6? Better commenting than with the - er "text editor"wink 

https://docs.moodle.org/28/en/Using_Assignment#You_want_to_view.2C_comment_on_and_send_back_students.27_assignments

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In reply to Mary Cooch

Re: Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

by Daniel Bailey -

Thanks Mary,

I appreciate the feedback. Lots of good advice.

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In reply to Mary Cooch

Re: Corrective feedback options with Moodle text editors

by Matt Bury -
Picture of Plugin developers

Hi Mary & Daniel,

Moodle's Wiki module and most other wikis have versioning systems built in which log what changes were made, by who, and when.

Unfortunately, AFAIK, Glossary auto-linking doesn't work in the Wiki module.

Re: sharing Glossaries, if I had one to share, I'd have put it on Moodle.net under a liberal Creative Commons (CC) licence. The owners of the projects I've worked on aren't so open-minded I'm afraid.

What you could do is copy definitions and examples from (CC) sources and cite them. You can also have members of staff make contributions on the understanding that it makes life easier for everyone. Since Moodle glossaries are digital and online, there's also nothing to stop you from using multimedia (images, audio, video, and animation) to clarify concepts and meanings wherever it makes sense.

Some former clients have even refused to allow staff to use CC licensed content because they want to copyright and sell the resources.

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