This article will guide you through the criteria that are currently in the beta phase. It is intended to help you understand which criteria are currently in this phase and what it entails. This article will be updated when changes are made to the stability of criteria or when new criteria have been added. Please let us know how they work for you.
What does "experimental" mean exactly?
When new criteria are developed, they go through several phases where they are actively being tested and evaluated. When a criterion is in the experimental phase, it has passed technical experimentation, but we keep it available to a smaller group of people assess its performance and pedagogical value. Criteria in this phase are known to to be less stable and most likely will require additional improvements.
However, we encourage active testing by interested teachers to access the pedagogical value and help us determine the quality of feedback and performance of the technology.
More information about the full lifecycle of a (new) criterion can be read in this article.
How do new criteria out of experimental?
These criteria are moved into beta when they have been sufficiently tested by a range of instructors and experts. In this way, we feel confident that it provides the necessary pedagogical value and performance for everyone interested.
Once a experimental criterion passes experimental evaluations, it moves into the beta phase, where it becomes available to all users. There, it will be further tested for stability, performance, and quality. You can read more about beta criteria here.
What experimental criteria are available?
All feedback criteria are divided into five overarching categories (read more here). Currently, we have experimental criteria that relate to language, references and tables and figures. In the next section you will find more detailed information about each criterion.
Category 1: Content and Structure
Criterion | Learning goal | Description | Language Support |
Linking words | Students learn to connect their ideas with appropriate linking devices | Feedback is given when sentences in a paragraph are not connected properly with appropriate linking words | English |
Paragraph length | Students learn to create paragraphs of appropriate length | Feedback is given on whether paragraphs contain a specified minimum and/or maximum number of sentences | International |
Category 2: Academic Language
Criterion | Learning goal | Description | Language Support |
Formal writing style: Avoid run-on sentences | Students learn to connect sentences correctly with a punctuation or appropriate vocabulary | Feedback is given when two complete sentences are not joined with a proper punctuation or coordinating conjunction | English |
Vocabulary: Precise writing | Students learn to write with a precise vocabulary to express their meaning | Feedback is given on vague expressions and suggests precise ones | English
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Category 4: Citing and referencing
Criterion | Learning goal | Description | Language Support |
Direct quotation usage | Students learn to think critically about the ideas they propose, rather than simply quote other people's work | Feedback is given on direct quotations and suggest paraphrasing | International |
Peer-reviewed references | Students learn to use high-quality academic literature | Feedback is given on references that are not peer-reviewed | International |
How can I try out the experimental criteria in my assignment?
First, you need to have access to the beta criteria which needs to be manually provided. Please reach out to [email protected] to request this.
Once you have access, they will automatically appear in your criteria overview when setting up an assignment with Automated Feedback, as shown below. If you would like to see how they work, you can select the criteria the same way as the stable and beta criteria listed in this article.
After you have saved your assignment, you can navigate to the try-out where you can upload a relevant document. By clicking on the results, you are redirected to you document and you can see the feedback that is given on these criteria.
Any criteria that are not working well for you yet can be removed. If you want to use any of them with your students, they will be aware that the criteria is still in beta and know that they should look critically at the feedback given.
Let us know how they are working for you
Your feedback is important to us! To help us learn how we are doing, please let us know how useful each feedback outcome is to you. By doing so, you will be able to help students worldwide to receive more relevant feedback on their assignments.
Do you have any feedback?
We welcome any suggestions or feedback you may have to help us improve the Automated Feedback tool. Whether it is a suggestion for a new criterion or feedback on the UI and UX, we are here to hear it!
This concludes the Trying out new beta criteria article.
If you have any questions or experience a technical issue, please contact our friendly support team by clicking on the blue chat button (Note: support is available 24h every weekday & unavailable on the weekend).
