Student engagement with feedback modalities in higher education: A scoping review of behavioural, cognitive, and affective dimensions

Despite growing interest in alternative feedback modalities, studnet engagement with feedback remains This scoping review synthesises evidence on student engagement behaviours across written, audio, and video feedback modalities in higher education, employing a multi-dimensional engagement framework encompassing behavioural, cognitive, and affective dimensions. Following PRISMA guidelines, searches across Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar yielded 1,596 records, with 41 studies meeting inclusion criteria after rigorous screening. Findings reveal that engagement with feedback is fundamentally multi-dimensional. Modality operates as an affordance layer rather than a determining factor, with behavioural access, cognitive processing, and affective responses operating in dynamic interdependence. While different modalities afford distinct engagement opportunities, no modality consistently produces superior engagement outcomes. Instead, feedback design features including clarity, specificity, dialogic intent, relational presence, and opportunities for iterative action, mediate engagement across modalities. This review advances feedback and assessment literature by reframing the discourse from modality comparison to engagement-oriented feedback design, positioning feedback as a relational learning process rather than a delivered product.

Innovations in Education and Teaching International

Innovations in Education and Teaching International

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1470-3300

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