2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

This evidence-based practice paper investigates the effectiveness and utility of video feedback (VF) for CAD models in engineering education. Traditional feedback methods, such as written comments, often lack the specificity and clarity needed for nonwritten student work [1-4]. This research explores VF as an alternative, where instructors provide detailed, recorded feedback directly over students’ CAD submissions. This extends the work-in-progress paper presented at the 2024 ASEE conference.

The study compares VF against traditional feedback in a one-credit solid modeling class. One semester (n=9 students) was taught using traditional feedback methods while three semesters were taught using VF (n=4/11/20). In both cases, students completed seven homework assignments involving CAD models, with feedback provided either through traditional written comments or VF. Metrics such as submission complexity, error rate, and independent tool usage were analyzed to assess the impact of VF.

In the traditional setting, feedback was given via written comments in a learning management system (Blackboard). For VF, Zoom was used to screen record the instructor’s voice as they interacted with SolidWorks CAD models submitted by students. These recordings were uploaded to a video hosting site controlled by the university (Microsoft Streams/SharePoint), and secure links to videos were sent to each student. Only the student in question could directly view the video, and downloading was not allowed. The video hosting site also auto-generated captions.

Results indicate that VF leads to increased complexity in student submissions, with the mean number of features per submission rising from 15.3 in the traditional cohort to 18.7 in the VF cohort. Similarly, the mean number of items per submission increased from 5.2 to 7.4. However, the error rate remained relatively unchanged, with a mean of 0.12 in the traditional cohort and 0.11 in the VF cohort. Student engagement with VF was high, with 47% of videos watched once, 27% twice, and 15% three or more times. The average video length per student per assignment was approximately 7.5 minutes. End-of-class surveys and analysis of evaluation comments confirm students use VF and find it helpful.

The findings suggest that VF is a viable option for providing feedback on CAD models, offering tailored and demonstrative feedback that enhances student engagement and submission complexity. However, the time investment for instructors remains a concern. In our final paper, we will discuss methods of reducing the instructor load, including excerpting critical feedback and creating AI agents that can increase throughput while maintaining specificity.

[1] J. Hattie and H. Timperley, “The Power of Feedback,” Rev. Educ. Res., vol. 77, no. 1, pp. 81–112, Mar. 2007,
[2] C. S. Nair, A. Patil, and P. Mertova, Enhancing Learning and Teaching Through Student Feedback in Engineering. Elsevier, 2012.
[3] A. Irons and S. Elkington, Enhancing Learning through Formative Assessment and Feedback. Routledge, 2021.
[4] J. Ross and S. Lancastle, “INCREASING STUDENT ENGAGEMENT WITH FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT THROUGH THE APPLICATION OF SCREEN CAST VIDEO FEEDBACK - A CASE STUDY IN ENGINEERING,” EDULEARN19 Proc., pp. 3962–3971, 2019, doi: 10.21125/edulearn.2019.1013.