The importance of feedback
Graduation Thesis
Presented to
the Faculty of the Department of
English Language and Literature
Notre Dame Seishin University
In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirement for the Degree
Bachelor of Arts
by
Haruka Ishihara
2016
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Table of Contents
Abstract
Chapter One: Introduction
1.1 Introduction1
1.2 Six types of feedback4
1.3 Positive feedback and negative feedback6
1.4 How to give good feedback7
1.5 Research on feedback8
1.6 Research questions9
1.7 Summary10
Chapter Two: The questionnaire
2.1 Introduction11
2.2 The questionnaire12
2.2.1 Introduction to the questionnaire12
2.2.2 Method12
1) Subject12
2) Test design13
3) Procedure14
2.3 Results14 2.4Summary 22
Chapter Three: Discussion
3.1 Introduction23
3.2 Summary of the results23
3.3 Discussion of the results24
3.4 Research questions26
3.5 Implications28
3.6 Limitations of the Experiment29
3.7 Further research29
3.8 Conclusion30
References31
Appendix32
Abstract
When we study a second language we need to motivate ourselves and get feedback from teachers, friends and ourselves. The feedback is necessary for not only second language learning but also other types of studying. Chapter One, explained several types of feedback and what feedback is.
Chapter Two, explained the process and presented the results of a questionnaire which examined how the subjects get feedback and what they do to learn something after the subjects get feedback.
Chapter Three discussed the results of the questionnaire in detail. Also, the research questions were answered. The results show that students want teachers to teach them about their mistakes without providing them with the correct form. The results suggest that teachers should pose questions or provide comments or information related to the formation of the student's mistakes. Teachers were said to be the most appropriate source of feedback for students. In addition, for students, positive feedback is better than negative. Positive feedback can motivate students to study more and more. In conclusion, teachers should give feedback to motivate them to study more.
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Chapter One: Feedback types
1.1 Introduction
What is feedback? "Feedback occurs when outputs of a system such as a language system are ‘fed back’ as inputs to others as part of a chain of cause-and-effect that forms a circuit or loop. The system can then be said to “feedback” into itself. The notion of 'cause-and-effect' has to be handled carefully when applied to feedback systems. Feedback is an essential part of education and training programs, it helps learners to study what they do not know” (Ford 2010). Feedback is very important to motivate people to study. If we do not have “feedback” our motivation to study will not increase.
When we learn something we need to get feedback from someone about the success or failure of what we do. From when we were children we got feedback in various subjects in school from teachers, friends and parents. If we made a mistake often teachers do not tell us about it and unless we notice or find our mistakes, we can't learn more and understand why we made mistakes. Feedback can motivate us to study more and find new knowledge. So feedback is important for us to learn something new and raise our motivation.
1.2 Six types of feedback
There are six types of feedback. The choice of which to use depends on the way to give feedback and this can make students feel happy, frustrated, angry, unhappy, and so on. Therefore, teachers need to understand each person’s character and give suitable feedback. This could be linguistic such as correcting a mistake deductively or inductively, or affective such as praising or motivate a student or scolding them as necessary. In this way, teachers can motivate or demotivate for students. Inductively means the teacher tells you what is wrong. Deductively means the teacher gives you a hint, but you must think for yourself. We will now look at each one in turn.
(1)Recasts
Recasts indirectly indicate that the student's utterance was incorrect; the teacher corrects the student's error, or provides the correction without say correct answer.
e.g.) Learner: *Meg meet Nancy yesterday.
Teacher: Meg met Nancy yesterday? I see.
In short, the teacher shouldn't say to the student “you made a mistake”. The teacher waits for the students to realize their mistake by themselves by presenting the correct form. Moreover, teachers should also give praise for the process of work.
(2)Clarification requests
Clarifications happen by using phrases like "Excuse me?" or "I don't understand," The teacher indicates that the message has not been understood or that the student's utterance contained some kind of mistake and a repetition or a reformulation is required. The teacher notices the meaning ofwhat the learner wants to say and notices what she said it is not correct. So teachers may ask “what do you mean?” “Would you try that again” or the learner couldn't understand and might be asked so.
e.g.) Learner: *Andy played himself by ball. (Meaning→ Andy played with ball alone.)
Teacher: What do you mean?
In short, teachers should find out the meaning of student’s utterance and students notice their mistakes by teachers.
(3)Metalinguistic clues
Without providing the correct form, the teacher poses questions or provides comments or information related to the formation in the student's utterance
e.g.) Learner: * Yesterday, I eat steak.
Teacher: No, “eat” is the wrong form. You used the present tense.
Learner: Yesterday, I ate steak.
In short, teachers give students some hint to find out the correct answer not say correct answer.
(4)Elicitation
The teacher directly finds the correct form from the student by asking questions by pausing to allow the student to complete the teacher's utterance or by asking students to reformulate the utterance. Elicitation questions differ from questions that are defined as metalinguistic clues in that they require more than a yes/no response.
In short, teachers don’t say to students “you make a mistake” so students find out their mistakes by teacher’s utterance such as “say that again” “try to think more”
e.g.) * Learner: I see him yesterday.
. Teacher: Try to think more.
(5)Repetition
The teacher repeats the student's error and adjusts (e.g.) the intonation to draw the student's attention to itso she will try again.
e.g.) * Learner: She drink tea.
Teacher: She DRINK tea.
In short, students can find the mistakes from the teacher’s repetition and emphasis of their mistake part.
(6)Explicit correction
Clearly indicating that the student's utterance was incorrect, the teacher provides the correct form.
e.g.) Learner: *I gone to the park.
Teacher: In English we say “went”.
The word “go” needs to be changed from present tense to past tense. “Gone” is not past tense form so we should use “went”.
There are many types of feedback. When people get feedback from someone they will feel something but it depends on them.
1.3 Positive feedback and negative feedback
There are two ways to look at positive and negative feedback, firstly, positive feedback happens when a part of the output is given back to the input so that the output increases and when teachers praise students about test scores and their efforts. The assumption is that many students feel happy and will study more and more. On the other hand, negative feedback happens when a part of the output is given back to the input leading to the output decreasing and includes when teachers scold students about their test score and their laziness. Therefore, many students feel not good and do not want to study harder. The way to give the feedback student’s motivation is up and down.
Secondly, positive and negative feedback can refer to the feedback that either confirms the correctness or accuracy of something produced. For example, a student may say “I bought three pens and the teacher responds saying “yes, that’s the correct way to say it.” Negative feedback occurs when a student may say “I bought three pen” and the teachers responds saying no, that’s the mistake. “You should use plural form.” Positive affective feedback encourages the learner to continue even if it is clear that the listener cannot fully understand. Negative affective feedback stops a learner from speaking andblocking out input.
1.4 How to give good feedback
There are many ways we can give effective feedback. For example:-
1. People who give the feedback is crediblein the eyes ofpeople who receive the feedback
2.People who give the feedback is trusted by people who receive the feedback
3. The feedback is conveyed with good intentions
4. The timing and circumstances of giving the feedback are appropriate
5. The feedback is given in an interactive manner
6. The feedback message is clear
7. The feedback is helpful to people who receive the feedback
1.5Research on feedback
The provision of effective and high quality feedback has been identified as a key element of quality teaching. Motivating students is very important for learning. If teachers do not get feedback to students they do not want to study more. The effectiveness of different types of feedback depends on their learning style, their motivation and situation. There are many students who like getting feedback and those who do not like to get feedback. It depends on their character.
Feedback is one of the most powerful influences on learning and achievement,but this impact can be either positive or negative. The type of feedback and the way itis given can be differentially effective. “To take on this instructional purpose, feedback needs to provide information specifically related to the task or process of learning that fills gap between what is understood and what is aimed to be understood” (Sadler,1989),and it can do this in a number of different ways. These may be through affectiveprocesses, such as increased effort, motivation, or engagement. If the work was good and teachers give students positive feedback, it will be good to motivate students. If the work was not very good, the teachers give students negative feedback, their motivation may go down. The balance of positive and negative feedback is important for student’s motivation.
1.6 Research questions
This chapter has explained the best feedback types and which is better for students positive and negative feedback. We can also see who is the best person who give feedback and what will they do after receive the feedback. The research questions for thesis are:
1. What kinds of feedback do NDSU students prefer?
2. Which do they prefer positive or negative feedback?
3. After students get feedback from teachers how do they feel and what will they do?
4. Who should give feedback and why?
1.7 Summary
In Chapter One, we saw that there aresix types of feedback. The students make efforts and sometimes they need teacher's feedback because the feedback affects their feelings and motivation.The best way to give feedback to students is a balance of positive and negative feedback. The balance of feedback also needs to respond to what the teacher knows of the learning needs of the student. Teachers should give several types of feedback depend on student's motivation and character. In Chapter Two, we will look at a questionnaire that investigates the four research questions.
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Chapter 2: The Questionnaire
2.1 Introduction
In Chapter One, we looked six types of feedback. There are many ways to give feedback. There are many students who like getting feedback and those who do not like to get feedback as it depends on their character. In addition, there are positive and negative feedback. Feedback is among the major influences on motivation, the type of feedback and the way itis given can be differentially effective. In addition, there are positive and negative feedback. This chapter will investigate whether positive feedback motivates us to study and whether negative feedback demotivates NDSU students.
In this chapter, we will look at data from a questionnaire about what kinds of feedback NDSU students prefer and how they feel after they get feedback, Moreover, we will look at their preferences forwho should give feedback and what they will do. Moreover we will look at how they feel after they get feedback and what will they do with it.
2.2 The questionnaire
2.2.1 Introduction to the questionnaire
We will look at a questionnaire into what kinds of feedback NDSU students prefer and how they feel after they get feedback, Moreover, we will ask who should give feedback and what will they do with it? There are many types of feedback. The questionnaire aims to find out which type is the best way and which type is better positive or negative feedback.
2.2.2 Method
1) Subjects
47 third and fourth grade subjects in Notre Dame Seishin University answered a questionnaire. They belong to the English language and literature Department and they had studied English for more than 8 years and their ageswerefrom 19 to 23.
2) Test design
In this questionnaire, there are many questions to reveal the answers to the research questions and relate to the way to give feedback from teachers to students.
The questionnaire had 20 questions. The students were asked how they feel and what will they do. Moreover they were asked, who is the best to give feedback to students and whether they prefer to get positive feedback and negative feedback?
Here are some examples.
・Imagine you get 1/10 on the test, but your teacher highly praises you for this score.
Q16. How would you feel?
very happy happy normal unhappy very unhappy
Why?
・Imagine you get 9/10 on the test, but your teacher gets angry with you for this score.
Q17. How would you feel?
very happy happy normal unhappy very unhappy
Why?
This questionnaire will find that which is better positive and negative feedback and some reason.
3)Procedure
The questionnaire was made as shown above and was shown to two people who checked it for errors and misunderstandings. Their comments were used to modify the questionnaire.
The questionnaire made by using Google docs and NDSU students answered this. Google forms collected and analyzed the different types of feedback and student's motivation. The data were put into excel and calculated.
2.3 Results
We will first look at the data for when teachers should get feedback to students?
Table 1. Q1 (a)When do you like to get feedback just after you take the test or a long time later?
Just after / 83.0%A long time later / 17.0%
83% of the subjects said that they prefer to get feedback just after they take the test than a long time after.
Next, we will look at the data for the situation to give feedback to students.
Table 2.(b) Do you like to get feedback after you take the test personally or with everyone?
Personally / 89.4%Everyone / 10.6%
89% of the subjects said they prefer to get feedback personally rather than with everyone.
Next, we will look at the data for who is the best to give the feedback to students?
Table 3. (c) Who is the best to give feedback just after you take the test?
Teacher / 74.5%Myself / 19.1%
Friends / 6.4%
75% of the subjects said that teacher should give feedback to students.
Next, we will look at the data for which is the better way to be given feedback for students?
Table 4. When you want to learn something new, do you prefer an inductive or deductive approach?
Deductive / 68.1%Inductive / 31.9%
The following sentences were shown to the students to explain these terms.
Inductive means the teacher tells you what is wrong.
Deductive means the teacher gives you a hint, but you must think for yourself.
68% of the subjects said that the teacher should give students a hint and we should keep thinking of mistakes.
Next, we will look at the data for what the subject's think to get feedback from teachers.
Table 5. How useful is feedback that you receive from your teacher on your test?
Very useful / 85.1%Sometimes useful / 14.9%
Almost of all students said that the teacher’s feedback is useful.
Next, we will look at the data what students do after they get feedback from teachers.
Table 6. (a) What do you usually do when you get your teacher's comments and corrections?
Read them carefully / 70.2%Read them through quickly / 29.8%
70% of the subjects said that carefully read teacher’s feedback.
Table 7. (b) What do you usually do with the feedback?
I try to correct my mistake / 68.1%I check my dictionary or grammar book / 31.9%
68% of the subjects said that try to correct mistakes and 31% check their dictionary and grammar book.
Table 8. Which is the better for you to get feedback on every mistake or only important mistakes?
On every mistake / 51.1%Most mistakes / 44.7%
Only important mistakes / 4.3%
51% of the subjects said that teacher should teach to students every mistake.
Next, we will look at the data for how do students feel after getting their own feedback?
Table 9. Imagine you get 1/10 on the test, but your teacher highly praises you for this score. How would you feel?
Very happy / 4.3%Happy / 2.1%
Normal / 8.5%
Unhappy / 40.4%
Very unhappy / 44.7%
About 80% of the subjects said they were not so happy to get negative feedback.
Table 10. Imagine you get 9/10 on the test, but your teacher gets angry with you for this score. How would you feel?
Happy / 10.6%Normal / 17.0%
Unhappy / 36.2%
Very unhappy / 36.2%
About 70% of the subjects said they would not be so happy to get such negative feedback for good work.
Table 11. Imagine you get 9/10 on the test and your teacher highly praises you for this score. How would you feel?
Very happy / 31.9%Happy / 59.6%
Normal / 8.5%
About 60% of the subjects said they would be happy to get positive feedback for good work.