Turnitin Launches Feedback Studio

A revamped version of Turnitin’s flagship product focuses on feedback over plagiarism.

• By Sri Ravipati
• 04/18/16

Turnitin has launched Turnitin Feedback Studio, the latest version of its flagship anti-plagiarism product that will emphasize feedback, ease of use and accessibility.

Renamed “Feedback Studio” to highlight its key function, the new version is “focused on helping instructors provide authentic feedback to improve student writing,” according to a press release. More than 2 million educators and 30 million students in 140 countries use Turnitin for its anti-plagiarism tools, but the company said the new version places feedback front and center.

“Worldwide, instructors rely on Turnitin for preventing plagiarism in student writing. Turnitin Feedback Studio goes a step further in helping students become better writers by giving instructors a single place to quickly provide direct, actionable feedback on all aspects of students’ work,” said Will Murray, chief product officer at Turnitin.

Features of the new tool include:

• New user interface that brings plagiarism prevention, feedback and grading into a unified view;

• Responsive design that is completely functional on PCs, tablets and smartphones to “support students and instructors wherever they are and however they work”;

• Upgrades to accessibility that are compliant with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 AA standards; and

• Expanded content database and enhanced anti-plagiarism technology that indexes the most relevant and up-to-date content on the web, including content that is hidden behind Javascript.

In a survey of more than 1,000 students that used Feedback Studio, the students said they valued feedback from their teachers and instructors as highly as course materials in support of their learning. Feedback Studio’s new interface allows educators to provide feedback on student papers from within one window the entire time they edit and comment. Additionally, teachers can choose from over 75 pre-written QuickMark comments like “citation needed” or “phrasing,” or they can write their own unique comments. Lastly, the new version offers grading rubrics and voice feedback options.

The new responsive design has been well received so far by teachers and students, according to the company. “By moving to provide a platform that is truly responsive, we are really making sure that students get the feedback when they need it the most and where they need it the most,” said Jason Chu, the education director at Turnitin.

Turnitin Feedback Studio is available to all current Turnitin users and is available on a per-student, annual subscription basis to new customers.