Rights Creative Commons: Attribution 3.0 Hong Kong License 1 Differing perceptions in the feedback process

ABSTRACT Feedback is central to the development of effective learning, yet is comparatively under-researched. This paper seeks to examine the notion of written feedback on assignments and argue that this feedback process is more complex than is sometimes acknowledged. I illustrate the problematic nature of assignment feedback by drawing on a large-scale questionnaire survey conducted across eight universities and then analysing the issue in more depth though fine-grained data collected from students in a teacher education institute. The paper is framed by the concepts of discourse, power and emotion. It highlights a number of different perceptions of students and tutors towards the assessment, marking and feedback process. I conclude by arguing that ‘assessment dialogues ’ are a way forward to mitigate some of the mistrust or misconceptions that may be unwanted outcomes of the assessment process