The care-full craft of feedback in an age of generative AI

Abstract

The disruptive and transformative presence of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) is rapidly reshaping education and learning. In this paper, we consider how GenAI is redefining what it means for students and educators to engage in feedback encounters, raising questions not only about what matters in feedback, but also about the very values that underpin meaningful learning. Taking stock of this significant shift, we examine what we know about effective feedback encounters and consider how GenAI technologies can be integrated into a feedback ecosystem that still prioritises meaningful learning as its primary goal. In doing so, we consider feedback encounters as matters of care, where a practice of care is something we do as scholars and educators. Arguing for the potential value of multiple modes of feedback in an age of GenAI, we examine some of the ways in which a care-full crafting of feedback processes might be understood. These core principles include recognising feedback encounters as more than comments; feedback as relational encounters; understanding the role of trust in feedback encounters; and recognising the professional craft of feedback. Our paper closes by offering directions for researchers and educators in developing feedback processes within this evolving landscape.