feedback

Faculty meeting discussion

For teachers feedback has the highest, immediate and most regular impact on student performance (Hattie, 2007).

Feedback in English is considered a chore because we think about feedback as 'what we write and correct on a piece of work.' This process is laborious for the teacher and often has little impact for the student - especially if it is spread throughout the piece or is given as a long series of dot points at the end. This sort of feedback is necessary to some extent, but there are other forms of feedback that can be utilized that is more effective for the student and more efficient for the teacher.

Black and Wiliam (2009) identify five major strategies for feedback: Feedback should act as evidence of student learning and be used to make decisions about the next step of required instruction (Hattie, 2012).
 * 1) clarifying and sharing learning intentions and criteria for success
 * 2) engineering effective classroom discussions and other learning tasks that elicit evidence of student understanding
 * 3) providing feedback that moves learners forward
 * 4) activating students as instructional resources for one another; and
 * 5) activating students as owners of their own learning

=Clarifying and sharing learning intentions and criteria for success= Before students start learning they need to know what they need to do to be successful. "If the student interacts with curriculum goals at the beginning and throughout the lesson, then the natural process of using feedback [to inform teaching] presents itself" (Pollock, 2012). In order for teachers to provide students with more feedback, they need to alter their teaching style, not 'mark more work'. "Feedback tied to a criterion or goal also clarifies relevant prospects for learning more information or taking action" but because "students have not typically learned to self-evaluate or self-regulate their progress using curriculum objectives" the teacher attempts to fill the gap with time consuming, teacher-centered feedback (Pollock, 2012).

Use rubrics like the ones below so students know exactly what is expected to succeed and progress. Using rubrics tied to learning goals and curriculum standards allows the teacher to put the onus back on the students to achieve. The teacher's role is therefore to use feedback to "make deliberate decisions to adjust teaching" (Pollock, 2012).
 * [[file:Creative Hunt rubric.docx]] || [[file:Two Column Notes Rubric.docx]] || [[file:paragraph rubric.docx]] ||  || [[file:COMPARE and CONTRAST rubric.docx]] ||   ||   ||
 * [[file:4 point rubrics for understanding and effort.docx]] || [[file:4 point rubric for Outcome 2.docx]] || [[file:Four Point Rubric for Descriptive Writing.docx]] ||  ||   ||   ||   ||

=Providing feedback that moves learners forward - Written feedback and marking= Feedback needs to be more than statements such as ‘concentrate more’, ‘get help with your spelling’ and ‘poor punctuation’. Feedback should tell the student where they are placed in relation to the learning goals set for the class and what they need to do to improve their performance. With this in mind, students need to be explicitly taught the value of feedback, how they can get it and what they should do with it when they do.

To save time on written feedback

 * Keep feedback to these four questions:
 * 1) **What did they do well?**
 * 2) **What didn't they do?**
 * 3) **How does their work compare with that of others?**
 * 4) **How can they do better?**

The first two points need to be answered in equal measure. Too often feedback focuses on one or the other, which is ineffective. The fourth point is the most important. Students naturally want to do better if they are constantly given the message that they are able to improve (Dinham, 2008).
 * DO NOT include**
 * **spelling corrections (identify but show them how to fix)**
 * **syntax errors (identify but reteach grammar)**
 * **praise** || [[image:sscenglish/IMG_2862.JPG width="400" height="297"]] ||

You don't need to cover each of those points in writing though. Why not do the third point as a peer activity and the fourth in a one minute conference? If you incorporate this into a lesson you immediately elevate feedback to something worth spending time on. Students won't ignore your feedback anymore. =Students as resources for each other - Peer Assessments=

=Students as owners of their own learning - Self Assessment= Students should always know how they are performing in relation to the learning goals. The best method for doing this is for students to do it themselves. By emphasizing self assessment and reflection students become more engaged in their learning. It is easier said then done.

Students should be asking themselves the following questions: If they are doing a task for the first time they will need help to answer this. Rather than explain each to each student you can use rubrics like the ones above. Spending a lesson with the rubric and teaching them what to look for when they assess can take care of the first two questions. A good rubric will also help them with the fourth by providing detail on what they still need to do. Then you can target your own feedback to be specific about how they can improve.
 * 1) **What can I do?**
 * 2) **What can’t I do?**
 * 3) **How does my work compare with that of others?**
 * 4) **How can I do better?**

Student reflection and self reporting
If we are asking students to become invested in feedback and their own progress then it leads to another interesting question, and one that potentially saves teachers time - should students report on their own progress? As the below image shows, students can be taught to collate, reflect and recongize how they have performed in a semester. This is the ultimate form of investment for students as stakeholders in their own learning and demonstrates they understand the feedback they have received throughout the year.
 * [[image:IMG_3076.jpg width="400" height="531"]] ||

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