A data-driven approach to student support using formative feedback and targeted interventions

De Montfort University (DMU) has approximately 30,000 registered students, primarily at its Leicester campus in the United Kingdom (UK) but also at campuses internationally, as well as UK-based and transnational education partners. Based in Leicester, DMU’s community was particularly hit by the impact of COVID-19, with Leicester being the first city to be placed in local lockdown, extending the period of lockdown beyond the broader national experience. The approaches described in this case study were motivated by the need to capture information about student progress in the lockdown-necessitated online environment but have been equally impactful in in-person classroom teaching. In the subject area of computer games programming (CGP) at levels 5 and 6, students are required to use theoretical underpinning to develop solutions to practical problems, often demonstrating mastery of learning through completing a single, large piece of coursework over a medium-long timeframe, usually three–five months. Through the learning and assessment journey, students plan, meet, and reprioritise a series of dynamic sub-objectives. This all takes place during weekly timetabled workshops where most of the valuable learning occurs. These are student- and assessment-centred learning environments where learners, facilitated by tutors, incrementally develop their coursework projects. These workshops are natural opportunities to monitor engagement and to provide instant, formative feedback personalised to the learner and directly related to assessment. CGP as a discipline attracts students with a wide range of learning preferences and differences; the classical approach of 1–1 in-person tutoring may not be the best approach for these students (Amoako et al., 2013). Additionally, the temporary move to online teaching necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic meant this established approach was not possible. Continual support and feedback are critical in an online setting and facilitated through sustained interaction between tutor and learner (Gikandi et al., 2011). Maintaining this interactivity is important, and it has been observed that continual documentation and sharing of learner-created artefacts is a key feature of meaningful interactivity (Gikandi & Morrow, 2016). In response the CGP team have developed a suite of innovative tools and processes to facilitate the real-time monitoring of student progress through using digital artefacts and the metadata associated with these digital artefacts. This approach provides students with timely formative feedback at key milestones in their progress and facilitates interventions for students requiring additional support to fully engage for best attainment. This approach is grounded in constructivist theories of learning. The individual learner is at the centre of the process, and the feedback process is an iterative, continuous part of learning (Carless et al., 2011; Molloy, 2014).