Feedback for any situation is such an important way to communicate with the student on how well they are doing or if they need additional direction. When I provide feedback to a student I think it is important to be very personal by using their name, identifying the information that they presented well in the assignment or to be specific regarding what was not presented well and provide an example of what information was expected.
It is also important that any feedback provided is done in a timely manner. All schools have a specified turn around time in which to complete graded assignments which is important to follow, but providing feedback consistently throughout the week in the discussion boards helps to keep students focused and engaged.
It is also important that feedback be consistent from week to week, for example if a student submits a paper in a poor APA format during the first week of class and no feedback is provided by the instructor, then the student will be confused as to why they lost points on another paper that had poor APA format, but was the same format they had previously used. This takes a lot of due diligence on the part of the instructor especially when grading a high volume of written assignments.
Sandra Masten
Shannon,
Right on! When we start on a postive note and then provide constructive, timely feedback, the students can learn from what we are providing them. Thanks!
Meaningful feedback should include:
1) Positive feedback
2) Constructive criticism
3) Timely feedback
Ted,
I do try to start my feedback on a positive note, but you're right, that constructive part must be there as well to help the students improve. Thanks!
There are three main components of good feedback:
1) Feedback should be detail and provided both positive and constructive criticism to the student so that improvement can be made.
2) A rubric can be used to develop a consistent level of feedback to all students. It lets students know exactly what is right and wrong in the assignment.
3) Feedback should be prompt and delivered while the assignment is still fresh in the mind of the student.
Alan,
Right on. The feedback should be tied to the learning outcomes and help the student improve. Thanks!
Feedback needs to be timely. This provides the student with the opportunity to review aspects of the class before proceeding.
The feedback should be detailed. What specifically was correct and incorrect. How might the answer been better presented. What further questions need to be asked for the student to delve deeper into the material.
The feedback should also link the detailed comments to the objectives of the class.
Sandy and Beth,
Right on. Any time we can reassess whether we are assessing the objectives or not is an great thing to do.
Sandy ,
Meaningful feedback is the key. Not just some feedback, but meaningful feedback to help them improve. Thanks for sharing your ideas/thoughts.
Beth, I think it is a great idea to use the grading rubric as a checklist. I think that many students review the rubric as a guide to completing their assignments but there will always be some that don't. I find that posting a checklist that outlines the assignment objectives along with the grading rubric at the end of each rubric is helpful. It also allows me to double check that objectives are appropriatly weighted and align with course objectives.
1. Feedback should provide an additional learning opportunity and should explain how they met the objectives as well areas needed for improvements.
2. Feedback should be positive. I typically use the sandwich method. State where they meet objectives first, then state areas where they can improve and close with another positive comment.
3. Encourage students to review feedback relative to grading rubric and inform instructor of any questions or clarifications they may have. It is important to stress that student's "earn" their grades and that grades are not earned based on "effort".
Encouraging students to ask questions is important. We want them to learn from the feedback provided. This should be communicated in the course expectations and each time grades are posted.
Mitchell,
You are right. Timely feedback that helps the students improve is essential. Using the rubric and providing additional comments with constructive criticism is helpful. Thanks!
Andrew,
Yes, we do need that connection with the learning outcomes. Any time a students says, "Why are we doing this?" or "This is stupid." I stop and say, "Maybe I haven't explained the learning outcomes so that they are clear." Everything we do should lead back to achieving those outcomes. Thanks!
LaMonica,
Improvement is the key, you are right on target We want our feedback to be taken as constructive criticism for students so that they will excel in your course and in other courses/assignments/projects/etc. Thanks!
1. Feedback should be given shortly after the assignment was due. Immediate reinforcement works much better than delayed reinforcement. Even if the student did the assignment correctly, they are likely to work hard for the next one if they are given immediate feedback.
2. The assignment should be graded with a rubric that has been provided to the student prior to the assignment. When the student knows the exact roadmap they need to follow to be successful, the amount of learning will be greater.
3. Be positive rather than negative. While studnets need to be told what they've done that is incorrect, it should be done in a constructive way as opposed to a punishing way. Provide the student with some things that they did well in addition to things that they had a difficult time with.
I do believe that we need to connected to the learning objectives, provide feedback that is positive in tone, and is individualized. The learning objectives basically state what was intended for the student for learning so all our lectures, discussions, feedback in the discussions and assignments, and even our posting to main announcement should have those objectives in mind. The tone must be positive so we do not discourage the student and instead enable the student to see what was done well, what requirements were not met, and then ways to improve with a positive tone they can indeed reach the goal if they take into account our clear feedback. I have had students who either have practiced in the IT area already thus are ahead of others so although I grade everyone equally to the objectives, I still may provide more technical and complex responses to those who can absorb the content. This keeps the student challenged and progressing.
Suggestions meaningful ways that student can improve the assignment/project, give credit where credit is due, and clarity. These are important for the student to be effective in making improvments.
Flora,
Right on. Meaningful feedback should help the students succeed. The feedback you describe would do just that. Thanks for your input.
The three most important consideration with feedback are:
1) Timely - students want to know how they did quickly
2) Meaningful - students want to know how they can improve for the next assignment
3) Clear - students need to clearly understand why points were taken off and what they needed to do to get those points. Clear understanding of how to do the assignment correctly is critical for success on future assignments.
Terry,
right on. Connecting everything to the learning outcomes is important. You want to make sure the feedback helps the student improve. Nice job.
