Framing Student Feedback: A randomised controlled trial comparing gain- and loss-framed personalised feedback on academic performance and engagement

Last registered on March 06, 2024
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Framing Student Feedback: A randomised controlled trial comparing gain- and loss-framed personalised feedback on academic performance and engagement
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0012792
Initial registration date
February 20, 2024

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
March 06, 2024, 3:04 PM EST

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

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Primary Investigator

Name
Andrew Ireland
Affiliation
Monash University
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Filia Garivaldis
PI Affiliation
Monash University
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PI Name
Andrea Fenton
PI Affiliation
Monash University
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PI Name
Simon Yap
PI Affiliation
Monash University
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Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2024-02-26
End date
2025-01-01
Keywords
Education
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
C93 I21 I23 D91
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
Education tells us that providing students with timely and constructive feedback is key to their learning. Behavioural science tells us that feedback that is personalised and aligns with students’ motivational styles, is more engaging and more likely to be acted on. In this research, we will apply these principles by sending ‘personalised’ progress emails to students throughout a semester, to ‘nudge’ them towards better quiz engagement and performance. The emails will be worded using loss vs gain framing (how much they have lost vs gained) to appeal to different motivational styles, and impact will be measured using learning analytics and quiz grades.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Fenton, Andrea et al. 2024. "Framing Student Feedback: A randomised controlled trial comparing gain- and loss-framed personalised feedback on academic performance and engagement." AEA RCT Registry. March 06. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.12792-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention Start Date
2024-02-26
Intervention End Date
2024-07-13

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Student grades on subsequent assessment (quiz and exam)
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Student engagement measured through requests for teacher consultation
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
We plan to measure students' motivational style via baseline survey in the first week of semester. Then, students will be randomly and unknowingly assigned to one of either the Gain Group or the Loss Group, upon submitting their responses to the survey.
During the semester students will receive three personalised emails with feedback on their in-semester quiz performance. The emails will be gain- or loss- framed depending on their treatment arm. The emails will also contain a link to request further teacher consultation. The primary outcome is performance on in-semester assessment (following each email) and on the final exam. We are looking for differences between performance of gain- and loss- framed groups depending on motivation style.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
Randomization will be done by the computer.
Randomization Unit
The unit of randomization is the university student.
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
800 students.
Sample size: planned number of observations
800 students.
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
Four groups of 200 students based on motivational style and gain- or loss- treatment.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Monash University Human Research Ethics Committee
IRB Approval Date
2024-02-21
IRB Approval Number
41375
Analysis Plan