Assessing Online Writing Feedback Resources: Generative AI vs. Good Samaritans

Shabnam Behzad, Omid Kashefi, Swapna Somasundaran

Abstract:

Providing constructive feedback on student essays is a critical factor in improving educational results; however,
it presents notable difficulties and may demand substantial time investments, especially when aiming to deliver
individualized and informative guidance. This study undertakes a comparative analysis of two readily available online
resources for students seeking to hone their skills in essay writing for English proficiency tests: 1) essayforum.com, a
widely used platform where students can submit their essays and receive feedback from volunteer educators at no
cost, and 2) Large Language Models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT. By contrasting the feedback obtained from these two
resources, we posit that they can mutually reinforce each other and are more helpful if employed in conjunction
when seeking no-cost online assistance. The findings of this research shed light on the challenges of providing
personalized feedback and highlight the potential of AI in advancing the field of automated essay evaluation.