When developing meaningful feedback, I am positive and truly care about improving any weaknesses. I also provide feedback on any strength/s the student demonstrates and encourage it. I provide resources so the student can gain more knowledge and see it from different perspectives. I always tell the students that I am here to help them succeed in my class. I also like the feedback on my comments and encourage it.
Brinda,
You provide some very important points for discussion. I am like you and believe in rubrics. They are so essential in evaluating student work. Your other points about being flexible and taking time to provide detailed feedback is essential to provide for individual feedback that is meaningful.
Well done. Thank you.
Janelle,
The 2 x 2 strategy is a great one. The constructive criticism is necessary to help students improve, but starting with "good" things helps stay on a positive note. The key in what you said is "specific" feedback.
You are on target. Thanks!
Chris,
You bring up good points for discussion. Being positive is essential in that we do not want to discourage learning, but improve the process. Helping students be successful and providing outlets for them to research are great strategies.
Thanks!
For me, the three most important things to remember is to first ensure that feedback is provided in a variety of ways. In having this first, it allows me to meet the second criteria of meeting the individualized needs of the students and finally to maintain a positive tone as I provide them feedback and they provide me feedback on what did or did not work for the course.
Tisha,
You bring up some very good points. Providing anything (content, feedback, etc.) are all best provided in a variety of ways - your are right. Any type of individualized attention you can provide to students is helpful. Providing such feedback in a timely manner is best as well.
Thank you.
Feedback should be tied to the objectives, frequent, and always carry a positive tone.
Hi Dr. Crews and class,
I believe that feedback should be positive. There is a nice way to say that something needs improvement. For example, I often us "I would have liked for you to have...". Try to avoid saying "You did this well, but...".
The feedback should also be individualized. It is always nice to start off with the student's name and comment specifically on their assignment instead of using generic comments.
Finally, specific and detailed feedback should be made. As mentioned above you should comment specifically on the student's work and provide details on what they did good and what needs improvement. Using a 2x2 matrix is a good way to accomplish this. A 2x2 matrix includes 2 things done well and 2 things that need improvement.
Regards,
Brian Smiegel
Brian,
I agree that starting with something positive even if it is "Thank you for submitting your work on time." or "I see improvement in your work from your last assignment." is a great thing. You want your feedback to be personal (as you said individualized) because each student may need help in different areas.
I like the idea of a 2x2 matrix. Also, it is very helpful if the students are involved in peer assessment and provide feedback to each other. Sometimes when students hear feedback from several sources, they feel that it is more helpful especially if they are getting the same constructive feedback from more than one person.
Thanks for your input. Nice job.
I believe the three most important things to remember are;
1. frequency - it is very important to continually monitor and respond within a very short time to the students responses
2. specific & meaningful - the response must have some meaning to it and be specific to the students response
3. related - it must relate to the course objectives so that the student sees the connection between their response and what it is we want them to learn.
Mark,
Nice job. I like the way you organized your thoughts and discussed briefly how these items are important. If you want good teaching evals when you teach in an online environment, these are all essential.
However, be careful with "continually." I always define for students what "immediate feedback" is on any email, discussion board posting, etc. Twenty-four hours is my "immediate." I found out early on in teaching online that is I respond to every email, every bit of communication, every posting, etc. within 5-10 minutes. . guess what - students expect it.
Just tell them up front what you expect from them and tell them what they can expect from you and then follow through! You are right in that students must see the relevance and your feedback must be meaningful and specific.
Thanks for your input.
An obvious one is to make sure it is meaningful, do not waste anyone's (including your own) time.
The feedback needs to reiterate the course and learning objectives.
It needs to be directed to the individual student, be honest, and fair.
Donald,
Yes, this should be obvious, but many times we get overloaded and give feedback quickly and sometimes it's not that meaningful. So, you are right - meaningful, reiterate learning outcomes, be consistent and fair.
Try to also start with something positive. Thanks!
Feedback is an important aspect of the learning process. There are many imporant things to include in effective feedback.
The three most important things to remember in providing feedback are:
- connections to learning objectives
- positive in tone
- specific and detailed
Providing effective feedback to the students improve the learning process.
I agree with many of the reponses already posted. Feedback should be specific and related to the objectives of the assignment. I like to pose the feedback as an open-ended question instead of a statement, such as "Have you thought about . . ."
I also think the feedback should be positive. Every email and post should strive for a warm, friendly tone.
I also think it's important to thank the student for his/her effort.
Daryl,
I'm glad you added the information about providing effective feedback also. The feedback should be meaningful and motivate the students to do better.
Many times it is hard to just select the three most important thing, but you have hit it on the head with your comments. Thank you.
Feedback must be giving in a timely manner so that the students have the ability to adjust due to that feedback.
It must be relevant to the material and give suggestions on how to correct their mistakes.
It must be presented in a way that the students do not feel that they are being put down. Positive reenforcement is the best way to promote change in a student.
I think the feedback should be positive and constructive.
It should be within an appropriate timeframe. It does not have to be immediate, but if you wait too long, the student has moved on to the next project/assignment, or they will feel as if their effort is not appreciated.
The feedback should guide them to do better work in the future.
Juliette,
You are on target! Positive, constructive feedback is essential. When discussion an "appropriate timeframe," I always define "immedate" to my students. They want immediate feedback and immediate to me is 24 hours. I always try to get something back to them within 24 hours.
Thanks for your input.
1. being positive is very important to me. People work better in an envoriment that is that, even a comments used to improve a student can be constructed in this way.
2. personal - I think all students like the personal touches and having things addressed to them and their skill level is very important.
3. consistant- stating the expectation and making them stay the same for all students.
