Feedback seeking behaviour in higher education: the association with students’ goal orientation and deep learning approach

Abstract

To make sure that feedback fulfils its aspirations, students’ active role in feedback should be acknowledged in higher education: It is students’ uptake of feedback that determines its effectiveness. In this study, feedback seeking behaviour of students is introduced in order to enrich our knowledge about students’ active role in feedback. Goal orientation was studied as antecedent of feedback seeking behaviour, and students’ deep learning approach as a mediating factor. Results indicated that students use both monitoring and inquiry strategies of feedback seeking, but they preferred monitoring. The association between feedback seeking behaviour and goal orientation was stronger for mastery goals than for performance goals. The preference for monitoring is stronger for students with more performance goal orientation. Deep learning approach was found to be a mediator in the relationship between goal orientation and feedback seeking behaviour. It can be concluded that students with the goal to learn from the activity will use more deep learning strategies and will seek more feedback, both in an active and passive way. This effect is less present for students with performance goals.

Keywords:

• Feedback seeking behaviour
• goal orientation
• deep learning

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Martijn Leenknecht

Martijn Leenknecht is policy advisor and researcher at HZ University of Applied Sciences and coordinator of the Dutch National Platform Learning from Assessment in Higher Education [Platform Leren van toetsen]. He is PhD-candidate at the Roosevelt Center for Excellence in Education, Middelburg. His research focuses on assessment for learning, feedback, students’ motivation and motivating teaching styles.

Priscilla Hompus

Priscilla Hompus is a multi-disciplinary lecturer at the Facility Management Department of Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences. She completed her master's degree in Educational Sciences at Utrecht University, focusing on feedback seeking behaviour in higher education. In her work she finds it important to stimulate feedback seeking behavior of learners and tries to incorporate this into the curriculum where and whenever she can.

Marieke van der Schaaf

Marieke van der Schaaf is full professor of Research and Development in Health Professions Education and Director of the Center for Research and Development of Education at University Medical Center Utrecht. She is the former director of the master programme Educational Sciences at Utrecht University and led several research projects on educational innovations and performance assessments. Her research focuses on (becoming) professionals’ learning by means of feedback.