A case study in the use of the five step peer evaluation strategy to improve a first year computer literacy course: An exercise in reflective evaluation practice

Abstract

In this paper, I recount my experiences in conducting a comprehensive five step evaluative exercise which was aimed at collecting feedback from various sources in order to help inform future teaching interventions for a first year computer literacy course in a South African university. The exercise centres on a focus group study that was conducted with a number of students who had completed the course between 2013 and 2015 and solicited their feedback on the basis of their own personal experiences. The five step process in which this study was executed included collecting feedback from a critical peer in addition to synthesising the author’s own insights. The study was prompted by the author’s realization that feedback is most often mistaken for evaluation, whereas evaluation is better conceived as the triangulation of various sources of information. The use of a focus group study instead of the common feedback method of the questionnaire also helped engage the students more robustly and was better suited as a tool to collect a richer set of qualitative data. The study yielded useful insights which have implications for teaching and learning activities, assessment of student learning and the curriculum at large.