Building Skill with Feedback

Overview

Questions

• How might learners’ use of genAI tools impact the pathways and mechanisms of feedback in a workshop?

Objectives

• Identify possible impacts of genAI chatbot use on the established feedback mechanisms in a workshop.
• Discuss how Instructors can encourage learners to continue to provide feedback in a workshop while interacting with a chatbot.

Challenge

Feedback Mechanisms

What is one way that a learner receives feedback on their work or understanding during a workshop? How might the learner’s use of a chatbot disrupt that feedback mechanism?

What is one way that an Instructor receives feedback on learners’ understanding during a workshop? How might the learner’s use of a chatbot disrupt that feedback mechanism?

Show me the solution

Feedback mechanisms for learners include:

• Exercises and worked solutions.
• Comments from Instructors, Helpers, and other workshop participants.
• Their impressions of their own ability to keep up with the pace of instruction, understand what is being taught, etc.

Feedback mechanisms for Instructors include:

• Sticky note feedback.
• Facial expressions and demeanors of learners.
• Results of exercises and other assessments.
• Questions asked and explanations given by learners.

One challenge that learners’ use of genAI tools presents to a workshop is that it removes a crucial pathway of feedback to the Instructor. If a learner turns to a chatbot for help before they turn to a helper or Instructor, the Instructor will never know what question they had, what they were finding difficult, or where they were stuck. This means the Instructor cannot identify trends in what the class is finding difficult and misses the opportunity to clarify the key points.

This is another reason why it is so important to create and maintain a positive learning environment in a workshop. If Instructors and helpers appear approachable to learners, encouraging them to speak up when they are stuck and to share what they are getting from genAI tools if/when they use them, these feedback pathwas are more likely to stay open. Nevertheless, you and your helpers may make all of these efforts and still observe learners using a chatbot before talking to a human.

Discussion

How Can We Encourage Feedback?

How could Instructors encourage learners to speak to them or a helper before resorting to a chatbot? What strategies could Instructors implement in a workshop, to encourage learners to be open about when and how they are using genAI while they learn? Can you identify any ways that learners’ use of genAI could be harnessed as a teaching opportunity in a workshop?

Key Points

• It can be difficut to gather helpful feedback if learners are using a chatbot instead of requesting assistance from Instructors and helpers.