Developing Meaningful Feedback
When developing meaningful feedback for assignments/projects integrated into your own online course, what do you believe are the three most important things to remember?
I believe the 3 most important things should be:
1)individualization of feedback- make sure that the feedback is specific to the particular student, studens needs and growth.
2) frequency- make sure that students get frequent feedback. This helps the instructor maintain a presence. With instructor presence students will put forth a higher level of effort; ultimately enhancing the learning process.
3) maintaining a positive tone- positive, constructive feedback is essential to the learning process.
I believe the feedback should be meaningful, varied, and of a consistent frequency. I also believe the student should be encouraged to respond to the feedback, further establishing a connection with the student and making he or she all the more comfortable with online learning.
Alysha,
Creating an environment where students feel as though they are getting individualize attetion is important. It has to be meaningful and relevant feedback and occur on a consistent, frequent basis.
Some times we have to tell the students what "frequent" is. It is not "immediate" necessarily, but frequent. Frequent/immediate tome is within 24 hours, but that is just my rule. Whatever your rule as a teacher, it must be communciated to students and followed.
And, you're correct - being positive is very important. Once you model these things in your feedback, you may see the same from your students.
Thank you.
Elizabeth,
Food for thought. . .as you have noted, you are developing communication through your feedback as you encourage reciprocal feedback from the students. Nice job. The connection you get, again, begins the development of a community of learners in an online environment.
Great!
In developing meaningful feedback for assignments/projects for my online course, three important things shoue be considered:
1. Feedback should be related to the course objectives. Objectives are central to the course and provide the purpose for assessments. It is important to let students know whether or not they have met those objectives.
2. Feedback should be specific and meaningful. This type of feedback not only gives students information on how they have done on this assessment but also helps them to improve on future assignments.
3. Feedback should be positive in tone. This involves focusing on how the student can improve instead of focusing on what the student has done incorrectly. It is also good to provide some comments on what the student has done well.
Rebecca,
Yes, feedback should be positive. When you begin with something the students have done correctly, it begins the process in a positive way. But, in addition, as you noted, the feedback must be meaningful. When an instructor simply says "Good job!" or "Way to go." this provides nothing to help the student continue to learn.
Thanks for your input.
Three things I consider important when giving feedback are:
1. timeliness: it's important that students get feedback as soon after they have completed a project/assignment as is possible. I teach mathematics and a student can not move on in the course until they know what errors they have made and how to correct them. The foundation of their learning must be laid before they can move on to more complex topics.
2. completeness: marking an answer wrong and just giving the correct answer doesn't work in a math class. I also include the entire solution so the student learns the method to solving a problem. Or I make notes on the student's work showing exactly where their error lies so they can learn from their mistakes.
3. upbeat: I always start my feedback by telling them all the good things they did or how well they solved certain problems before I get into the problems done incorrectly.
Betty,
I very much like the terms you use - as you put them in common language. Yes, upbeat is essential. A positive tone helps students view feedback and important and viable. It is also essential to be complete and appropriate in feedback. Thanks for your added discussion to this topic.
Hi Dr. Crews,
Although I do agree that feedback should be meaningful, I do think that there are times where "Good Job" or "Way to go" can be appropriate responses in the discussion board or on the assignment grade grid. One of the courses we have at our college is "Strategies for Success" where students are to write "STC's" or "Strategic Thinking Centers". Answers to the questions - from students - may include the goals that student is setting - or perhaps a shared story about success in his/her life. In certain cases, where, for instance, there may be 4 or 5 questions/answers in an assignment - writing "good job" or "way to go" may be that "tickler" that keeps the student pressing forward.
With that said, I don't disagree that feedback does need to be meaningful and cannot always be "good job" - and the instructor needs to have awareness of when he/she needs to add additional "meaningful" feedback.
Respectfully,
Toni Bond
Alysha - I love what you are saying in your #3 - creating a positive tone. I would also add to that - instructors need to monitor themselves - and read and re-read emails before hitting that "send" button at times. I think that students sometimes "hear" a different tone than what is wanting to be projected by the instructor. I have one instructor who uses lots of exclamations and CAPS. Most students understand that is her enthusiasm showing, while a minority - however small is still heard - complain that the instructor is "yelling" at them and "short/curt" in responses, often using "exclamations" to make her point.
Thanks for sharing, Alysha!
Respectfully,
Toni Bond
Oh Toni - by all means! The "attaboys" are awesome for motivating students. You are right. There are so many different types of feedback and they are all important in different ways.
What I don't like to see is when instructors say "good job" or "way to go" for everything and never provide meaningful feedback on specific assignments so students can grow in their learning.
Thanks for you comments - for sure!
1. I really believe that students deserve specific feedback on assignments or projects. I like the statement that good feedback makes a connection between the instructor and the assignment for the student. If a student takes the time to do the assignment then I need to really look at it. As a student, I wanted to really know what the instructor thought of my work. A general statement at the end saying that I had made good points didn't really satisfy me. But if an instructor put notes in the margins showing me where I had done a good job specifically, that was very helpful.
2. I know that students deserve timely feedback. It does no good to point out mistakes to them in writing assignments three weeks later because they will have already turned in three more assignments where they missed the opportunity to make those necessary improvements. Many of our adult students have been out of school for a number of years. They are scared that they will not be able to do the work or keep up the pace necessary with online class. Specific feedback and encouragement are vital to retention of students.
3. With writing classes it is so difficult to retain objectivity in grading. When I started teaching 40 years ago, a rubric did not exist. I find that the rubric not only helps me know what I am looking for specifically, but the rubric lets the students know up front what specific elements I feel are important with this assignment. If they study the rubric before tackling the assignment and follow what is laid out for them, they will feel more confident that what they submit has meet the goals and objectives of the assignment. I get at least one email each week where a student says that he/she is not sure if this is what was required of the assignment, but I have also not heard from this student through email or discussion area that clarification was needed.
Billie,
First of all congratulatins for teaching for over 40 years! Wow, I bet you HAVE seen tons of changes.
I am glad rubrics are helpful to you. They are so essential in consistency and again letting the students know what is expected.
Specific, meaningful, timely feedback, as you mentioned, is also important in the classroom whether F2F or online. Keep up the good work!
Dr. Crews:
I believe that Feedback needs to include the following:
1. Assignment specific meaning make sure that the feedback is constructive and relates to the assignment completed by the students instead of generic overall feedback.
2. Make sure that the feedback provides enough information that the student can understand what they did wrong and how not to make the error in the future. Sometimes I have found that by highlighting their submitted files and adding comments seems to help and makes the students actually look through their returned homework to see where they missed points.
3. Make sure that the instructor is fair to everyone and provides the same amount of feedback to everyone that completes an assignment and also offer positive feedback to those that receive a perfect score.
Kim Houck
Hi Toni:
I agree as well and think those that receive perfect scores should also receive some type of positive reinforcement so they continue to submit the type of work they have to obtain the perfect score.
Kim
Hi Betty:
I, too, like your choice of words!
I agree that providing feedback on a timely basis is very important, thus I try to grade assignments nightly.
Completeness and upbeat are also Excellent word choices as when one provides constructive feedback should let the student know whey and how they missed a problem and staying upbeat and asking them to let you know if they have any questions provides each student with the opportunity to contact the instructor should they not understand something.
Kim Houck
Hi Billie!
Congrats on 40 years of teaching! Excellent.
I agree that it can be difficult to obtain objectivity with various writing assignments without a rubric. I also find that to be true with various case studies that are used in Accounting as they can be difficult to grade without a rubric in place.
I also agree that students deserve timely feedback and try to grade nightly if I can.
Great thoughts!
Kim Houck
Kim,
You bring good points to the discussion. It is definitely important for students to under what they did wrong AND why it is wrong. That will help them understand how not to make the same error in the future.
I'm not sure what you mean by "the same amount of feedback to everyone" because some students will need more feedback than others depending on their content understanding and abilities.
Thanks.
Billie
I also am impressed with the 40 years of experience! I share your impression of how the rubric is a tool that helps both the instructor and the student. Clearly stating expectations improves outcomes.
John
