Feedback underpinning your practice… “A teacher produced, literally, an all-singing, all- dancing lesson. There was music, comedy, costumes, games, thinking hats, and all with clear objectives on the whiteboard. He recorded a teaching quality grade of inadequate. Not because of the ‘performance’ on the day but because students’ graffiti strewn books hadn’t been marked for six months and work was shoddy or incomplete. In contrast, he graded teaching as outstanding in a classroom where students sat reading in silence because of the exceptional quality of students’ work, and the teachers’ marking, in exercise books.”

The importance of feedback Marking is a chore and we just do it to tick a box or because we have SLT checks… ”You should employ people to mark for you”. The point of marking books is to provide feedback to our students and to give us information to help plan future lessons. If we establish a culture of classroom practice where feedback in lessons happens consistently and in different ways, then this will limit that amount of book marking you do, and therefore make it a more valuable process.

Ideas for outstanding feedback Meaningful peer assessment Used language like ‘this means’, ‘therefore’, ‘as a result’, ‘this meant’? Has your peer... YES They will most likely have EXPLAINED their point, in which case you can look at giving them a level 3. NO They will most likely have DESCRIBED their point, in which case you can look at giving them a level 1-2. Have they explained more than one reason? YES This will probably mean they can be awarded full marks NO This will probably mean they can only be awarded either 4 or 5 marks. Have they used a reasonable amount of detail to describe their answer? YES This will probably mean they can be awarded level 2 (2- 3 marks). NO This will probably mean they can only be a level 1 (1 mark). Suggested comment Time yourself when completing your next 6 marker so it’s similar to exam conditions. Suggested comment Make sure you explain 2 or more reasons. Suggested comment Use sentence starters that will help you explain, e.g. ‘This shows’, ‘this meant’, ‘because’. Suggested comment Revise some of the key points from your lesson notes so you feel confident with your knowledge. Peer assessment task Examine the work your peer has completed for their homework task and complete the assessment activity below. Your homework was to create a postcard that shows an event in history you find interesting. You needed to include an image and some description. Does the postcard have a clear image of the event? Does the postcard have information about the event? In your opinion is this enough or too much information? E.g. does it help teach you about the event in question. (explain your response). Has your peer taken time over their homework? Is there anything you could suggest to help them improve on their work? Circle the grading you think best shows the level of effort your peer has put into their work. *GS NU Name: Signature: Date:

Smart working I only get students to write in their books if it is vital. Plan activities that make them think rather than mindlessly copy. Success criteria is a quick, efficient and easy way to do meaningful peer assessment. Discuss with the class 3 things they think would make the answer/activity successful. Write on the board and then students can use this to make a judgement on whether they or their peers have met the criteria. They can refer to these using WWW, EBI.

Effective book marking React to this feedback immediately. Use the time given to you in lessons or at home to complete the aims. This is a longer term target that you should take on board for the next time you complete a similar piece of work, e.g. if you have feedback to use a different style of writing for a particular exam question, you will try to do this for your next question of this type. DIRTy marking!!

(First) (attempt) (in) (learning) (in) (attempt) (second) Independent reflection time Act on your feedback. Read through your feedback