Growth-Producing Feedback

There's a ton of research out there that claims to provide edcuators with the best ideas to increase student achievement. The ideas are wide and varied, but typically include topics such as differentiation, assessment, curriculum design, and motivating at-risk students. For me, the most powerful idea that I have researched relates to feedback. Feedback is an incredibly powerful tool that has the potential to make a huge difference in student achievement and teachers have it at their disposal! When feedback is given to students properly, it makes a major difference. Students who are given specific information about the accuracy and quality of their work will spend more time and effort on achieving academic tasks. As a classroom teacher, I witnessed this first-hand when I made the decision to commit to conducting regular writing conferences with my students. I saw the writing improve- DRASTICALLY- in just a few short months. As an instructional leader, I believe that teachers also benefit greatly from specific feedback related to their practices. When I give feedback to students or teachers, my primary rule of thumb is to make sure that they know that feedback is not about praise or blame, approval or disapproval. It's about helping them to grow and improve. Ultimately, I do not want students or teachers to become dependant on my feedback. I believe that when feedback is provided in the proper manner, the recipient begins to develop the skill of self-assessment. This is my goal- to help them to become more self aware and reflective.