Anonymity as an Instructional Scaffold in Peer Assessment in Higher Education Contexts

• In Event: Peer Assessment Effects on Student Learning Outcomes With a Focus on Higher Education

Abstract

Although previous research has indicated that providing anonymity is an effective way to create a safe peer assessment (PA) setting, it may in turn directly impact how students perceive the value of PA and the quality of the peer feedback (PF) (Li, 2017). Furthermore, continuously ensuring anonymity should be avoided as it prevents students from experiencing genuine two-way interactive feedback dialogues. The present study investigated whether a transitional approach from an anonymous to a non-anonymous PA setting can overcome these challenges. Based on previous work by Cheng and Tsai (2012) it was hypothesized that students’ PF quality would improve and lower students’ attributed importance towards anonymity. Additionally, recommendations will be extracted on how to implement similar procedures in higher education.
A total of 46 bachelor’s degree students in Educational Studies organised a workshop for their peers on one of the provided topics (e.g. The Jigsaw Classroom). In a with-in group repeated measures design, each workshop design was assessed by all fellow peers; hence, all students provided multiple peer assessments. This PF was then projected—anonymously in the first two sessions, non-anonymously in the last two sessions—followed by a teacher-guided discussion. Because the students were physically present in face-to-face classroom situations, guaranteeing anonymity for the assessor was facilitated through the use of Mobile Response Technology. Assessors had the opportunity to give immediate (non)anonymous PA scores and PF via web-enabled devices such as smartphones, tablets, or laptops.
To test our hypotheses, both students’ evolution in PF quality as well as their perceptions were measured. PF quality was approached in terms of content characteristics, i.e. the presence of verifications and elaborations (Gielen, Peeters, Dochy, Onghena & Struyven, 2010). After the PF messages were coded, their data were analyzed quantitatively through repeated measures ANOVA analyses.
The content analysis of the PF messages revealed that the quality of PF increased in the anonymous phase and that over time, the feedback in the consecutive non-anonymous sessions was of similar quality. Regarding students’ importance level towards anonymity (Mean effect Time: [F(2,78) = 6.98, p = .002, ηG² = .12]), the pre-test results (Time 1; 4.95 (1.31)) indicate that students initially highly prefer an anonymous PA environment. There was no significant increase after the anonymous sessions (Time 2; 5.25 (1.31)), and there was a significant decrease after the non-anonymous sessions compared to both Time 1 [F(1,39) = 4.74, p = .036, r = .33], and Time 3 4.33 (1.47) [F(1,39) = 17.75, p = .000, r = .56]. One could state that students’ importance level evolves towards a more neutral stance.
The findings suggest that anonymity can be a valuable scaffold to ease students’ importance level towards anonymity and their associated need for practice. As a consequence, our next study will explore the use of a dynamic self-choice anonymity mode, in which students themselves can decide when to give their input (non-) anonymously. Recommendations for its implementation in higher education will be presented.

Authors

• Tijs Rotsaert, Ghent University

• Tammy Schellens, Ghent University