THE EFFECT OF STUDENT REFLECTION QUALITY ON A TECHNICAL WRITING ASSIGNMENT RESUBMISSION

The role of reflection and self-regulation in academic performance was tested using the "Exam Wrapper" strategy with a writing assignment for a technical elective course. The technical writing assignment involved the creation of a detailed outline for a technical report. This outline was submitted for grading and feedback before a subsequent extended technical report assignment. The outline was graded by the course teaching assistant, following a detailed grading rubric. After receiving the grade and feedback, students could resubmit a revised outline for re-grading, and include a reflection on the circumstances of their performance. Using the grading rubric, the resubmission was graded by the course instructor. A second graduate student evaluated the student reflection quality, and the resubmission quality. The effect of the self-reflection quality on re-submitted assignment improvement was assessed. The average grade improvement for students who resubmitted a reflection was +15.1 % (n=16), and for students who resubmitted without a reflection was +6.3 % (n=3). The difference between the average resubmitted and first submission grades positively correlated with reflection quality. These results suggest that a reflection exercise associated with a resubmission has potential to improve student technical writing quality.