Feedback Studio Prepares Cerritos Community College Students for Four-Year Degrees

In the spring of 2013, then-Vice President of Academic Affairs, Joanna Schilling, initiated a campus-wide rollout of Feedback Studio after seeing successful adoption in the English Department. While active student usage increased by 67% that year, faculty use across departments still needed a boost.

Enter Lisa Boutin-Vitela and Julie Trager, both professors in the Art History department. In Fall of 2014, Lisa and Julie conceptualized a multifaceted campaign called, “Let’s Write and Turn it On!” This initiative showcased Feedback Studio’s academic relevance beyonds plagiarism detection and emphasized the importance of integrity, writing, and technology at Cerritos College.

Lisa and Julie championed Feedback Studio throughout the campus, setting up training opportunities for faculty members to learn how to use Feedback Studio. Lisa and Julie also volunteered to give presentations at the department, division, and new faculty meetings, where they garnered the most excitement for the tool.

Lisa, in particular, relayed how Feedback Studio made it easy for her to give feedback quickly, which increased the quality of her students’ work. “The more students write, the more confident they will feel in their abilities,” observed Lisa, “and the more feedback they receive on their drafts, the more opportunities they will have to get better.”

Lisa and Julie acted as Turnitin ambassadors for faculty members with questions about Feedback Studio. Additionally, they emphasized that Feedback Studio was a more sustainable, paperless choice. This green push complemented the college’s sustainability campaign.

“Let’s Write and Turn It On” is a success. Between 2015 and 2016, the number of active students using Feedback Studio skyrocketed from 13,969 to 19,433. By 2017, 135 instructors adopted the solution, an increase from 49 instructors in 2012. A variety of departments--including the college’s esteemed nursing program--now use Feedback Studio.

The majority of Cerritos College instructors are now utilizing Feedback Studio efficiently in their classrooms, benefiting students across all departments in this campus-wide adoption.

Learn more about Feedback Studio at turnitin.com/products/feedback-studio