Abstract—This paper details the evaluation of an Automated Essay Scoring (AES) software for the purposes of providing feedback on students’ writing. The study aimed to ascertain if faculty and students found the writing draft support provided by the automated feedback of the software accurate, of good quality and useful. AES software subscription for institutional use may then be endeavoured. Using a mixed methods design, consisting of user survey, user interview and analysis of the AI-generated feedback, 33 students (Age 19–25, male and female) enrolled in an academic writing course and 2 faculty members teaching the course participated in this pilot. Generic feedback was given in five categories, namely, Focus & Meaning, Content & Development, Organisation, Language Use, Voice & Style, Mechanics & Conventions. Overall, 60% of the users indicated positivity towards using AES if made available to them although they thought that the AES-generated feedback provided minimal understanding of their strengths and weaknesses in writing due to its generic nature. For the 30% of users who rated highly on the quality and usefulness of the AES feedback, they were mainly focused on the grammar check functionality of the AES. Faculty feedback mirrored students’ feedback. The study revealed 2 roadblocks for the adoption of AES. 
 

Keywords—computer aided assessments, e-assessment, automated essay feedback

Cite: Sze Yie M. Chye, "Enhancing e-Assessment in Higher Education: An Exploration of an Automated Essay Feedback System," International Journal of Learning and Teaching, Vol. 11, No. 1, pp. 24-28, 2025.

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