Extending the learning benefits of audio feedback on academic writing

As one of the various types of teacher’s feedback on writing, audio feedback has been used with favourable responses from students for its detail, clarity and personal touch. This paper will present how audio feedback is used by a teacher in a Year 1 university academic writing course. The focus is not so much on introducing the choices of digital tools available in the market. Emphasis will be laid on the types of feedback on academic writing that can be more effectively communicated through audio means. While giving feedback is one of the most time-consuming tasks of every teacher of academic writing, it is also undeniable that there is no guarantee that students would study teacher’s feedback seriously in their private time when revising their drafts. This presentation will attempt to change the passive nature of this ‘teacher-student’ feedback process by introducing how teacher’s audio feedback can be further exploited and turned into a whole-class activity to consolidate what students have learnt. As such, students take a more active role when digesting teacher’s feedback, and the learning benefits of teacher’s audio feedback can be extended from a one-to-one setting to a more interactive dimension in the classroom. Copyright © 2018 Asia TEFL.