Giving and receiving quality FEEDBACK D.S.TRUTER ( SCT )

We will ask ourselves: What do the experts say about Feedback? What is Effective Feedback? What does this look like in practice? Where does Assessment fit in? “dollops of feedback”

What is Feedback? What the experts say… “dollops of feedback”

What is Feedback? The simplest prescription for improving education must be… providing information about what a student does and does not understand, and what direction the student must take to improve. Hattie (1999) “dollops of feedback”

Feedback by teachers to students is: evaluative – involving a value judgment or descriptive – describing what the student said or did. Tunstall and Gipps (1996)

Evaluative feedback: involves a judgment by the teacher based on implicit or explicit norms promotes self-management and independence Most teacher feedback interactions observed were at the evaluative end of the continuum eg: “That’s a good essay.” “You’ve done well.” Tunstall & Gipps (1996)

Descriptive feedback: is task- and outcome-oriented focuses on identified learning outcomes and makes specific reference to the student’s achievement eg: “That’s a good essay because you have covered the main points we discussed at the beginning. Now … which points do you think you could expand on?” Tunstall & Gipps (1996)

High quality feedback is not always written When feedback is given in writing, some students: have difficulty understanding the points the teacher is trying to make are unable read the teacher’s writing can’t process the feedback and understand what to do next Asking a student to tell you what they think you are trying to say to them is the best way to check this out. Hawk and Hill (2001)

Students given only comments scored on average 30% higher Findings from Ruth Butler’s research on year 7 students: Students given only marks made no gain from the first to the second lesson Students given only comments scored on average 30% higher Giving marks alongside comments cancelled the beneficial effects of the comments Research conclusion: If you are going to grade or mark a piece of work, you are wasting your time writing careful diagnostic comments on it. Wiliam (1999)

More Research Findings Teachers give their students too many criteria making it very difficult for specific feedback to be given too much information in their marking which students find overwhelming and difficult to take in Clarke suggests: When giving written feedback teachers should highlight three successes in the student’s work and one area where some improvement is needed Clarke (2001)

Oral Feedback Prompts Reminder prompt Scaffolded prompt Example prompt Remember: prompts need to be focused around the learning intention of the task Clarke (2003)

“How could you make this story flow better?” Scaffolded prompts: Reminder prompt: “How could you make this story flow better?” Scaffolded prompts: A sentence given with words missing A specific focusing directive or an open ended question Example prompts: “What did he look like? … it would make your story more interesting…” “How did it make you feel? ... happy? … sad?... ” Clarke (2003)

Some Feedback Techniques Delayed grades Diagnostic comments Verbal conferencing Challenging open-ended questions Random testing Peer evaluation and discussion Student self-evaluation and reflection

Feedback should… Cause thinking Provide guidance on how to improve Focus on what to take forward to the next assignment rather that what is deficient about the last assignment Be used by both teacher and student to enhance learning Be goal-oriented

What is EFFECTIVE Feedback? “dollops of feedback”

What is Effective Feedback? Effective Feedback answers three questions: Where am I going? (What are the goals?) How am I going? (What progress is being made toward the goal?) Where to next? (What activities need to be undertaken to make better progress?) These questions correspond to notions of feed up, feed back, and feed forward. Effective feedback must answer three major questions asked by a teacher and/or by a student:

Effective feedback… is specific – both positive and critical is descriptive, rather than evaluative is immediate – given as soon as possible offers alternatives or asks the learner to looks forward to the specific next steps to improve performance plans for opportunities for the feedback to be implemented as soon as possible involves the learner wherever possible, in order to be best understood and acted upon Sutton (1998)

Effective Feedback should… focus on the learning intention of the task occur while the students are learning provide information on how and why the student understands and misunderstands provide strategies to help the student to improve assist the student to understand the goals of the learning

What does Effective Feedback look like in practice? “dollops of feedback”

In practice this means: Clarifying learning outcomes at the planning stage Sharing learning outcomes with students at the beginning of each lesson Involving students in self assessment of the learning outcomes (meeting the ‘success criteria’) Focusing oral and written feedback around the learning outcomes (How am I going) Organizing individual goal setting so that student achievement is based on what students know as well as what they need to aim for to succeed at the next level (Where am I going) Using rich questions that both challenge and guide the next learning steps (Where to next)

Where does Assessment fit in? What the experts say… “dollops of feedback”

Where does Assessment fit in? Formative and summative assessment provides teachers and / or students with valuable feedback information “It is not the instrument that is formative or summative, it is the timing of the interpretation” John Hattie, University of Auckland (1999)

Formative assessment takes place during the course of teaching and is used essentially to feed back into the teaching and learning process Formative and summative assessment are interactive. They seldom stand alone in construction or effect Gipps, McCallum & Hargreaves (2000)

Assessment is learning oriented when it Is integrated into instructional design so that it becomes invisible Creates engagement in learning Helps learners to understand what successful performance looks like Generates information that can be interpreted in terms of a learning progression Focuses attention on growth rather than well- being Provides a focus for supportive conversations between learners

Research indicates that improving learning through assessment depends on five key factors: The provision of effective feedback to the students The active involvement of students in their own learning Adjusting teaching to take account of the results of assessment A recognition of the profound influence assessment has on the motivation and self esteem of the students, both of which are crucial influences in learning The need for students to be able to assess themselves and understand how to improve

What does this look like? Sharing learning goals with students Involving students in self assessment Providing feedback which leads to students recognizing and taking the next steps Being confident that every student can improve

Rate your feedback… How well do you… Share learning goals with your students? Involve students in self assessment? Provide timely, focused feedback that lead students to the next steps? Do you have confidence that every student in your classes can improve?

Assessment References Clarke, S. (2001). Unlocking formative assessment: Practical strategies for enhancing pupils’ learning in the primary classroom. London: Hodder and Stoughton. Clarke, S. (2003). Enriching Feedback in the primary classroom. London: Hodder and Stoughton. Hawk, K. & Hill, J. (2001) The Challenge of Formative Assessment in Secondary Classrooms SPANZ Journal, September 2001. Tunstall, P., & Gipps, C. (1996). Teacher feedback to young children in formative assessment: A typology. British Educational Research Journal, 22 (4). Sutton, R. (1998). School-wide Assessment. Improving Teaching and Learning. New Zealand Council for educational Research. Wellington NZ. Wiliam, D. (1999). Formative Assessment in Mathematics. The Mathematical Association. Equals. Summer Volume 5, Number 2.