Using Narrative and Metaphor in Formative Feedback: Exploring Students’ Responses

[First paragraph] When I get feedback even when I’ve done something good they’ll just write “good” . . . or they’ll say “this sentence doesn’t make sense” but in my head it makes sense; how does it not make sense? . . . or like a question mark . . . I’m like, I don’t know what you’re questioning! These comments were expressed by a final-year undergraduate law student reflecting on her experiences of receiving formative feedback on various written assignments that she had submitted during her course of study. Inasmuch as they demonstrate a sense of frustration and miscommunication, this student’s particular views may be seen as typical of many students’ feelings about feedback.