Feedback Tools and Templates
AAC Website
Descriptive Feedback
· specific, written or oral information that is linked to the learner outcomes
· acknowledges what has been done well and what improvements could be made
· can be provided by teacher or peers
· is most effective when NOT accompanied by letter grade or numerical scores
What does the research say about the value of descriptive feedback?
A research study conducted by Ruth Butler* (1988) examined the results of three different means of providing feedback to students about their work. The table below summarizes the feedback method and the results:
Comments only / 30% / 1. all positive
Grades only / no gain / 1. positive for top students only
2. negative impact for lower students
Combination of comments and grades / no gain / 1. positive for top students only
2. negative impact for lower students
as summarized by Black & Wiliam* Butler, R. "Enhancing and Undermining Intrinsic Motivation." British Journal of Educational Psychology 58 (1988): 1–14.
Two Stars and a Wish
Student ______Date ______
Project ______
Stars and Wishes from ______
A Star / I noticed that you did this well:A Star / I noticed that you did this well:
A Wish / I wish you would . . .
Feedback Sandwich
Student ______Date ______
Project ______
Feedback Sandwich from ______
Top Crust (a compliment for work done well)Filling (suggestions for gourmet quality work)
Bottom Crust (a concluding compliment for work done well)
Descriptive Feedback Prompts
These prompts can be:
· modeled by teachers to demonstrate how to provide feedback on work in progress
· posted in the classroom for student reference during peer feedback
· provided to students as a reference page for their notebooks
· expanded further during ongoing class discussions
Prompts for Compliments
v It was effective when you ____ because ____.
v I noticed that ____.
v It helped when you ____because ____.
v I liked ____ because ____.
v
Prompts for Suggestions
v You might think about ____.
v You might consider ____.
v What if you ____?
v I wonder what might happen if you ____.
v I wonder what the impact might be if you ____.
v It might be more effective if you ____.
v I had trouble understanding ____. You might want to clarify that part.
v
Checklist
· records a 'yes' or 'not yet' evaluation
· like a toggle light switch – the light is either on or off
· provides more detailed feedback when accompanied by comments to support the rating
· can be used by teachers, students, peers
· not intended to be used to generate summative grades due to the effect of extreme scores
What is the effect of extreme scores?Assigning numerical scores for checklist items can lead to grade distortion. Items in the ‘yes’ column would be scored as 100% whereas items in the ‘not yet’ column would be scored as 0%. The impact of a zero grade is exaggerated by typical report card scales. For example, most report cards have a 10 – 15 point range from one performance level to the next with the exception of the failing grade which has a 50 point range. Attempting to translate checklist scores into a numerical value can distort the student weaknesses and keep the score artificially low.
Checklists are best used as formative tools to help students identify areas for improvement prior to submitting work to the teacher for grading. The positive phrasing of the ‘not yet’ category highlights the ongoing nature of the work in progress; while the work might not yet meet the acceptable standard, with more work and time, the potential exists for the work to be brought up to standard.
For a detailed discussion on the impact of zeros on grading, see the following:
· A Repair Kit for Grading (O’Connor, 2007)
· The Case Against the Zero (Reeves, Phi Delta Kappan, Dec 2004)
· 0 Alternatives (Guskey, Principal Leadership; Oct 2004)
Teacher Observation Checklist
Student Name ______Date ______
Task ______
Criteria / Yes / NotYet / Teacher Comments
Student Self-reflection Checklist (variation)
Student Name ______Date ______
Task ______
Criteria / Yes, because . . . / Not yet, but here’s howI can make it better:
Self-reflection Checklist: Grade 9 English Language Arts
Diorama Display Techniques (ELA 4.3.3)
CriteriaIn my diorama, did I: / Yes because: / Not yet, but here’s how
I can make it better:
· blend the foreground and the background? / · I need to pay more attention to this. I’ll check magazine pages for coloured landscape spreads that will blend.
· create an inviting stage for the story? / · I was careful with the construction of the diorama. I paid attention to the details and I think it looks great!
· use props to add interest? / · The props add interest and are also accurate in terms of the details of the novel. See description on pp. 13 – 14 and note how the diorama has captured the details of where the house, fence and buildings are set in the surrounding landscape.
Rating Scale
· records an evaluation based on a range of levels of quality – can be any number of levels, with 3 or 4 being most common
· levels can be based on frequency of occurrence, independence, or quality
· provides more detailed feedback when accompanied by comments to support the rating
· effective as a formative tool can be used by teachers, students, peers
Should students be ‘grading’ the work of their peers?
Many references to teachers’ professional responsibilities for assessment are found in the Teacher Quality Standard http://education.alberta.ca/department/policy/k-12manual/section4/teachqual.aspx . While peer feedback processes have been found to be useful in supporting student learning, these do not replace teacher professional responsibility for grading. Peer feedback should be provided in a formative context only. Descriptive feedback, checklists and rating scales can be useful tools to help students provide peer feedback. Rubrics, with the numerical values removed can also be used. When used purposefully, the results of peer feedback can help students make decisions about how to improve their work prior to submitting an assignment to the teacher for summative grading.
Rating scales are most useful as formative tools to help students identify areas for improvement of work in progress. As such, a 3-point rating scale can be used, even though a report card may use 4 categories. While this may lead to most ratings falling in the middle range of the rating scale, teacher/student comments provide the detail needed for students to make adjustments to their work (see samples and templates in this online document).
However, it may be desirable to use the information obtained from a rating scale to transfer to a grade book for reporting purposes. Simply adjust the categories in the rating scale to align with the grading categories on the report card. It is essential, however, to ensure that the criteria contained on the rating scale are linked to the learner outcomes.
Rating scales are often used for behavioural characteristics that are not appropriate for grading but may be more applicable in the section of the report card dealing with work habits and personal growth. Again, the categories in the rating scale can be adjusted to align with the report card categories.
Rating for Frequency
Student Self- reflection Rating Scale: Journal Entry Grade 8 Social Studies
Name ______Date ______
Task ______
During the debate I: / Consistently / Frequently / Occasion-ally / I know this because:· expressed my point of view in a persuasive manner
(8.S.8.2) / ü / I feel strongly about my position and was well prepared for the debate. I feel that I was persuasive in my presentation and during the question period.
· listened respectfully to other points of view
(8.S.8.5) / ü / It was hard not to interrupt when the other point of view was being presented. I really felt that they missed the main point and that their argument was flawed. I found it really hard to wait!
Teacher Observation Rating Scale (frequency – 4 levels)
Student Name ______Date ______
Task
______
Criteria / Consistently / Frequently / Occasionally / Rarely if ever / Teacher CommentsTeacher Observation Rating Scale (independence)
Student Name ______Date ______
Task ______
Criteria / On his/her own / With a bit of help / With a lot of help / Only with help / TeacherComments
Teacher Observation Rating Scale (level of quality)
Student Name ______Date ______
Task ______
Criteria / WOW! / Well done / A good start / Not yet / Teacher CommentsCriteria / Consistently / Frequently / Occasionally / Rarely if ever / I know this
because:
Student Self-reflection Rating Scale (independence)
Student Name ______Date ______
Task ______
Criteria / On my own / With a bit of help / With a lot of help / Only with help / I know thisbecause:
Student Self-reflection Rating Scale (level of quality)
Student Name ______Date ______
Task ______
Criteria / WOW! / Well done / A good start / Not yet / I know thisbecause:
Rubric
· describes quality of student work at various levels
· avoids quantitative descriptors
· can be used for formative purposes as students measure work in progress against the standard and take steps to improve their work
· can also be used to generate summative grades
How can students understand the language of the rubric?It is essential that students understand the language of the rubric in order to have a clear vision of the learning target. It is also important not to resort to oversimplification of terms in an effort to meet young students at their vocabulary level.
The use of a variety of faces (happy, sad) might be appropriate for very young children but as soon as students have a wider vocabulary, these symbols should be replaced with more precise vocabulary.
The same principle applies to the overused terms such as excellent, very good and so forth. While teachers may have an intuitive sense of what is excellent, students need to know specifically what makes a piece of work excellent. Exemplars of student work at varying levels of quality will help clarify this for students.
AAC Rubric Wordwall
· Build and display a rubric glossary in the classroom to help students develop a vocabulary of assessment terms.
· New words can be added as the year progresses.
· Conversation around exemplars is an essential part of the process in helping students understand the various levels of quality.
· With this understanding, student can match their current work against the standard and identify places where improvement can be made prior to submitting the completed assignment/task.
Words about: / Level 4 words / Level 3 words / Level 2 words / Level 1 wordsFocus
How appropriate is the information? / Pertinent
You included specific and important information about the topic. / Relevant
You included important information that helps the reader make sense of the topic. / General
You included information that is correct, but it may need to be focused more directly. / Trivial
The information isn’t really very important and doesn’t help the reader understand the topic.
Insight
How insightful is the information? / Insightful
You included unique ideas that bring a fresh perspective to the topic. / Thoughtful
You included ideas that go beyond the obvious. / Predictable
You included ideas that most people would think of. / Simplistic
Your work is simple and lacks in-depth thought.
Detail
How much information have you included? / Comprehensive
Your information covers the important points in detail. / Thorough
You have the important information. / Partial
You have some of the information, but the reader still has many unanswered questions. / Superficial
You have just scratched the surface.
Appeal
How interesting is your presentation? / Engaging
Your work captures the attention of the audience. / Interesting
Your work keeps the attention of the audience. / Simplistic
The audience is only mildly interested in your work. / Ineffective
You are unable to hold the attention of the audience.
Organization
How does your organization help the audience understand your message? / Skillful
It is easy for the audience to understand your message. / Logical
The organization make sense to the audience. / Awkward
The audience has to work to understand your message. / Confusing
Your message does not make sense.
Quantitative descriptors seem less subjective. Why don't we use quantitative descriptors?
Unless a numerical value is specifically mentioned in the learner outcome it is inappropriate to assign a quantitative value to the rubric descriptor on which the grade will be based.
For example, if a learner outcome indicates that students must access multiple sources of information during the research process, it is inappropriate to determine that students who consult 4 sources will receive a score of 4 on a 4 point scale (or A), 3 sources will yield a score of 3 (or B) and so forth. This system also has the unintended consequence of allowing students to opt out of their learning by deciding to take a lower score in order to do less work.
Rubric descriptors need to reflect the quality of how students demonstrate the skill. In this example, a teacher may determine that between 4 and 6 sources are needed in order to gather evidence of student ability to demonstrate this skill. Students who submit work without the required number of sources may require additional support in locating additional sources before completing their assignment; they would not, however, be penalized by lower grades. The rubric descriptor is then created based on what quality looks like at various levels.
The challenge in attempting to describe quality is in coming to a shared understanding between teacher and students about what various levels of quality look like. Exemplars of student work representing various levels of quality are useful in helping students understand the learning target.