Improving Teachers’ Questioning Quality through Automated Feedback: A Mixed-Methods Randomized Controlled Trial in Brick-and-Mortar Classrooms

Journal article

Dorottya Demszky, Jing Liu, Heather C. Hill, Shyamoli Sanghi, Ariel Chung
EdWorkingPaper, 2023, pp. 23-875

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APA Click to copy
Demszky, D., Liu, J., Hill, H. C., Sanghi, S., & Chung, A. (2023). Improving Teachers’ Questioning Quality through Automated Feedback: A Mixed-Methods Randomized Controlled Trial in Brick-and-Mortar Classrooms, (EdWorkingPaper), 23–875. https://doi.org/10.26300/8pnw-5q67

Chicago/Turabian Click to copy
Demszky, Dorottya, Jing Liu, Heather C. Hill, Shyamoli Sanghi, and Ariel Chung. “Improving Teachers’ Questioning Quality through Automated Feedback: A Mixed-Methods Randomized Controlled Trial in Brick-and-Mortar Classrooms,” no. EdWorkingPaper (2023): 23–875.

MLA Click to copy
Demszky, Dorottya, et al. Improving Teachers’ Questioning Quality through Automated Feedback: A Mixed-Methods Randomized Controlled Trial in Brick-and-Mortar Classrooms. no. EdWorkingPaper, 2023, pp. 23–875, doi:10.26300/8pnw-5q67.

BibTeX Click to copy

@article{demszky2023a,
  title = {Improving Teachers’ Questioning Quality through Automated Feedback: A Mixed-Methods Randomized Controlled Trial in Brick-and-Mortar Classrooms},
  year = {2023},
  issue = {EdWorkingPaper},
  pages = {23-875},
  doi = {10.26300/8pnw-5q67},
  author = {Demszky, Dorottya and Liu, Jing and Hill, Heather C. and Sanghi, Shyamoli and Chung, Ariel}
}

Abstract

While recent studies have demonstrated the potential of automated feedback to enhance teacher instruction in virtual settings, its efficacy in traditional classrooms remains unexplored. In collaboration with TeachFX, we conducted a pre-registered randomized controlled trial involving 523 Utah mathematics and science teachers to assess the impact of automated feedback in K-12 classrooms. This feedback targeted “focusing questions” – questions that probe students’ thinking by pressing for explanations and reflection. Our findings indicate that automated feedback increased teachers’ use of focusing questions by 20%. However, there was no discernible effect on other teaching practices. Qualitative interviews revealed mixed engagement with the automated feedback: some teachers noticed and appreciated the reflective insights from the feedback, while others had no knowledge of it. Teachers also expressed skepticism about the accuracy of feedback, concerns about data security, and/or noted that time constraints prevented their engagement with the feedback. Our findings highlight avenues for future work, including integrating this feedback into existing professional development activities to maximize its effect.