Being specific about feedback

I've just watched this video:



It got me thinking about the kind of feedback we give to students especially when we're marking books, or digital work.  Is it specific enough?  Is it the kind of feedback that is going to allow them to re-draft and get better at what they've done?  Or is it the kind of feedback we just give because we have to mark work and we've finished the activity.

The resonated with me when I look at my own teaching practice and try to be specific with feedback sometimes I slip into that need to just finish a task and give a little bit of feedback about what the students have completed vs giving them really specific feedback on where they can go next.  The time I have with the students is often a factor in the feedback I give them.  Something I need to be more aware of it I think as the less specific feedback isn't going to be helpful to them.

As an ICT lead teacher working with small groups of students the feedback I give them is often on the spot and leads them to what to do next but I sometimes feel like I'm constantly just telling them what to do... however watching this video got me thinking - well actually they need to be told what to do next to improve on what they've already achieved.  Then the next time they use the same skill the starting point is much further along and they're ready to learn more complex skills.

I've been working on creating experts in classrooms and working out ways to get students to teach others rather than just doing it for them.  I think I'll take parts of this type of explanation when working with those experts so we can talk about the difference between feedback and doing the task for the other student they're trying to teach.  I think it's also a great discussion starter for how to be specific about feedback and the use of vocabulary especially the proper names for things when we're explaining how to do something using our ICT equipment.


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