The Power of Feedback

Jennifer Partrick
Sep 14, 2009

Not giving our students feedback is a missed opportunity to help them grow.  When students' work is returned without comments or an opportunity for conversation with a teacher, the student only knows what questions they got correct or what they got wrong.  What students need to know is, why they got it right or wrong and what to do next if they are to improve.  What then are some advantages of giving feedback?

It is not just a grade:  When teachers give feedback (notes or conversation) they are sending a clear message to students that their learning is more than a grade.  The teach er is saying that he/she is aware of what the students know and what they do not know and is giving support in order for them to grow.

How to improve:  Students need to know what and why they made mistakes.  Was it faulty thinking, failure to include information, failure to read the assignment clearly, not knowing the information, etc.?  When students know where they made mistakes and possible reasons for why they made mistakes, they then have a clear path towards fixing the mistakes and ultimate growth.

Self-monitoring:  When students receive feedback it helps them self-monitor.  They know where they are and what they have to do to get a better grade, and more importantly, to understand the material.

Motivation:  Knowing how to fix mistakes creates motivation.  As students repair mistakes and learn, they become motivated to do better.  As they grow they feel better about what they are learning and are motivated to do better the next time.  They understand what they nee! d to do in order to grow.

You care:  Taking time to give feedback shows that you care.  You care enough to write a note or have a conversation that helps the student improve.  Good relationships between teacher and students are critical for learning.

Strengths and challenges:  Students need to know what they are doing well and where they are challenged. Most importantly, students need to know what they can do to get better.  They need to know how to optimize their strengths and overcome their weaknesses.

Planning:  Teachers are able to plan for instruction once they can articulate what their students know and do not know. Perhaps some students should be grouped for remediation, or some should be grouped based on pairing strong students with students who need support, or more time should be spent working on a specific body of information.

Teachers know their students:  Each time teachers give feedback, th ey are getting to know their students better. Knowing your students improves relationships and supports how you instruct in order to help all of your students, because you know what each student needs.

Assignments:  Knowing your students can support how you differentiate assignments.  Teachers truly learn how their students think, what they know well, their strengths and weaknesses, and their affinities.  Having access to this information helps teachers design assignments that support how their students learn.

Giving feedback is a critical part of instruction if teachers want their students to learn.   It does not have to be long or in-depth.  It simply needs to be straightforward, easy to understand, and give the students sufficient information in order to repair the problem or to do better next time.

Follow this link to view the LEARNING-FOCUSED Assessments Collection.