Responsible Use of
AI Feedback
EssayHero analyses YOUR writing — it doesn't write FOR you.
Think of it as a practice partner that helps you understand what makes good writing — so you can get better on your own.
For Students
How EssayHero Works
EssayHero reads the essay you've written and gives you feedback based on official marking criteria — just like a teacher would. It looks at your content, language, and organisation, then tells you what you did well and where you can improve. The AI never writes your essay; it only comments on what you've already written.
AI Disclosure
We encourage you to tell your teachers that you're using AI feedback tools. There's nothing to hide — using EssayHero is like getting extra practice with a tutor.
Teachers appreciate knowing you're taking extra steps to improve. Being open about your learning tools shows maturity and honesty.
Best Practices
Write your essay first, then use EssayHero for feedback
Read the feedback carefully and understand WHY changes are suggested
Revise your essay yourself — the learning happens in the revision
Use the revision feature to track your improvement over time
Don't copy AI-suggested rewrites word for word — use them as inspiration
For Teachers
How Teachers Can Use EssayHero
As a first-pass feedback tool to supplement your marking
To identify common class-wide issues across student writing
As a formative assessment aid between major assignments
Encouraging Responsible Use
Create a class policy on AI feedback tools
Discuss the difference between AI writing and AI feedback
Celebrate students who use revision features — it shows a growth mindset
Student Data in Batch Marking
Batch Essay Marking extracts student names, class information, and candidate numbers from your scanned pages to match reports to the correct student. As the uploading teacher, you are responsible for handling this data appropriately.
Inform your students that their essays will be processed by an AI system and that their names will be extracted for report identification. Transparency builds trust.
Obtain appropriate consent from students and, for those under 18, from their parents or guardians. In line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC Article 3), the best interests of young people must be a primary consideration.
Handle reports responsibly. Share links and CSV exports contain student names and scores. Distribute these through secure channels and only to the students concerned.
Respect deletion requests. If a student or parent asks for their data to be removed, you can delete individual reports from the batch results at any time.
This guidance is informed by the BERA Ethical Guidelines (2024) on data handling in educational contexts. All batch data is auto-deleted after 30 days — the same retention period as shared reports.
Our Commitments
We never store essays longer than necessary
We never share student writing with third parties
For individual use, our handwriting scanner automatically filters out personal information (names, school headers, candidate numbers) before processing
For batch marking, student names extracted from scans are teacher-controlled and auto-deleted after 30 days
Research data is always anonymised
We publish our scoring accuracy openly
Our code is open source — anyone can verify our claims
AI Limitations
AI is a powerful tool, but it's not perfect. Keep these limitations in mind when using EssayHero.
AI feedback is not a replacement for teacher feedback
AI can make mistakes — always use your own judgement
Scores are estimates, not official grades
The AI may not understand cultural context or creative intent perfectly
Research Ethics
EssayHero contributes to educational technology (EdTech) research in AI-assisted language learning, conducted as part of a postgraduate programme in education.
Research Ethics Statement
EssayHero collects anonymised, aggregate usage data for the purpose of EdTech research into AI-assisted writing feedback. This research aims to understand how students interact with AI feedback tools and whether such tools can meaningfully support exam preparation in Hong Kong and internationally.
This statement explains what data we collect, how it is protected, and what rights you have. It is written in plain language so that students, parents, and teachers can all understand it.
Risk assessment: We have assessed the risks of this research as minimal. The data is fully anonymised at the point of collection, the research is observational (no intervention or experimental conditions), and no sensitive personal topics are involved. The primary theoretical risk would be re-identification of participants, which is mitigated by separation by design — research data is stored as aggregate statistics with no technical path back to individual users.
Purpose of Data Collection
We collect anonymised usage data to answer research questions about AI-assisted writing feedback in education. Specifically, we study:
How score distributions vary across exam types and grading strictness settings
Whether students who revise essays after receiving AI feedback show measurable improvement
Which learning tools are most effective at supporting specific writing skills
How AI scoring accuracy compares to human marker benchmarks over time
This data helps us improve EssayHero and contributes to the wider academic understanding of AI in education. Findings may be shared in academic publications, conference presentations, or open-access research reports.
What we collect
Only anonymised, aggregated data — individual essays cannot be reconstructed from research data.
Anonymised score distributions
Revision rates and improvement patterns
Tool usage patterns (which features are most helpful)
What we don't collect
Your writing stays yours. We never use essay content for research purposes.
Essay content is never used for research
Personal identifiers (names, emails, schools)
IP addresses for research purposes
Anonymisation Safeguards
Research data is anonymised at the point of collection, not after the fact. This means there is no "original version" with your identity attached.
No essay text — research data contains only numerical scores, word counts, and usage timestamps. Your actual writing is never stored in the research pipeline.
No user identifiers — research records are not linked to user accounts, email addresses, IP addresses, or any other personal identifier.
Aggregate statistics only — data is stored and analysed in aggregate form (e.g. "average Content score for HKDSE users this month"), not as individual records.
Separation by design — research data is stored in a separate pipeline from user accounts and essay history. There is no technical path to re-identify a research data point.
Legal Basis
Our research data collection relies on legitimate interest under Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). We have determined that:
The research serves a genuine educational purpose — improving AI-assisted writing feedback for students
The data collected is minimal and fully anonymised, posing negligible risk to individuals
Users can opt out of research data collection at any time without affecting their use of EssayHero
Because the data is fully anonymised at the point of collection, it falls outside the scope of most data protection regulations. We apply GDPR-level safeguards as a matter of best practice regardless.
Data Retention
Research data is retained for the duration of the research project, up to a maximum of five years from the date of collection
Published findings use aggregate statistics that cannot be traced to individuals and remain part of the academic record
User account data (essay history, progress) is separate from research data and is deleted when you delete your account
Shared reports auto-expire after 30 days and are not included in research data
Access and Oversight
Research data is accessible only to the principal researcher (the creator and maintainer of EssayHero)
No third parties, advertisers, or commercial partners have access to any user data or research data
Academic supervisors may review anonymised, aggregate findings as part of the postgraduate research process
EssayHero's source code is open source — anyone can verify how data is handled
Ethical Framework
This research is guided by the BERA Ethical Guidelines for Educational Research (5th edition, 2024), the leading ethical framework for educational research in the United Kingdom. Our initial framework was developed using the 4th edition (2018) and has been updated to reflect the current edition. We uphold the five foundational principles set out by the Academy of Social Sciences:
Democratic inclusion — research should respect and actively include the perspectives of all participants. We make our findings openly accessible and design our tools for all students, regardless of background.
Respect for persons — participants are treated with dignity. No data is collected that could embarrass, expose, or disadvantage anyone.
Integrity — we are transparent about our methods, honest about our limitations, and committed to accuracy. Our open-source codebase and published methodology ensure that our research practices are fully auditable.
Social responsibility — findings are shared openly to benefit educators, students, and the wider EdTech research community. We consider the broader social consequences of our work.
Maximise benefit, minimise harm — data collection is minimal and proportionate. We collect the least amount of data needed to answer our research questions, and we design the platform to support learning outcomes.
We also acknowledge BERA's Statement on the Use of AI in and for Educational Research (2025), which addresses the ethical considerations specific to AI-powered educational tools. As a platform that both uses and researches AI in education, we take these guidelines particularly seriously.
Formal institutional ethics approval will be sought before any publication of research findings. This page will be updated with the approval reference number once obtained.
Young Participants
Many EssayHero users are HKDSE students aged 16-17. In line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), we recognise that children's best interests must be a primary consideration in all actions concerning them (Article 3). We take our responsibilities to younger users seriously.
Anonymised at collection — because research data is fully anonymised at the point of collection, no personally identifiable data about minors is ever stored in the research pipeline. There is no record linking any data point to an individual student of any age.
No parental consent required — specifically because the research data cannot be traced to individual students, parental or guardian consent for research participation is not required under BERA guidelines. The data poses no identifiable risk to young participants.
Parents and guardians welcome — we encourage parents and guardians to read this ethics statement in full. If you have any questions or concerns about how your child's use of EssayHero relates to our research, please contact us.
Designed for learning — the platform is built to support exam preparation. No features are designed to collect, profile, or track young users beyond what is necessary for the learning experience they have opted into.
Researcher's Declaration
BERA guidelines require researchers to disclose any dual roles or potential conflicts of interest. In the spirit of that principle, we make the following declaration:
The principal researcher is also the developer and maintainer of EssayHero. This dual role means that research findings could influence development decisions, and development priorities could influence what is researched. We acknowledge this tension openly.
To manage this dual role responsibly:
Open-source verification — the entire codebase is publicly available, allowing independent scrutiny of data collection methods, scoring algorithms, and research pipelines
Published methodology — our scoring calibration process, accuracy metrics, and research methods are documented publicly, not kept internal
Independent academic oversight — research findings are reviewed by an academic supervisor who is independent of the EssayHero project and has no commercial interest in the platform
Right to Withdraw
You can opt out of research data collection at any time. Opting out does not affect your ability to use EssayHero in any way.
To opt out going forward — uncheck the research consent checkbox before submitting an essay. No further research data will be collected from your sessions.
To request exclusion of past data — contact us using the details below. Because research data is anonymised, we may not be able to identify specific records, but we will make every reasonable effort to honour your request.
No consequences — withdrawing from research has no effect on your EssayHero account, essay history, or access to any features.
Questions About Our Research?
If you have questions about our research practices, data collection, ethics compliance, or wish to exercise your right to withdraw, please get in touch. We aim to respond within five working days.
Concerns procedure: If you have a concern about any aspect of the research ethics described on this page, you may contact the researcher directly using the link below. Once institutional ethics approval has been obtained, you will also be able to raise concerns with the relevant institutional ethics committee — details will be published here alongside the approval reference number.
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