February 9, 2016
By Jenna Fournel, Chief Curiosity Officer
Listen to this week’s Hooray For Monday podcast episode for the audio version of this issue.
Remember back in the day when you’d come home with a cereal box or handmade envelope full of Valentines from school? You’d try to suss out whether your little friends meant anything by the particular cards they chose for you. It’s a survival instinct to constantly interpret the world around us; throw some text and imagery into the mix, and our brains are off to the races.
In the modern era, an emoji can start or end a friendship, and a misunderstood text can leave us festering for days. We crave understanding. We want to know what things mean. And if we’re getting feedback—good, bad, or in-between—it’s so much better if that feedback is specific and meaningful.
To put it simply, we want to know why.
This is as true in learning as it is in love. Yes, it takes more time. But think of how much more a student can do with a comment on their writing like:
“I’m noticing how you use this beautiful descriptive language to help me see what the character sees” vs. “Good job.”
The first statement lets a student know what they did that made the writing compelling. The second just lets them know the teacher likes it. As teachers, this is especially important because we don’t want students doing the work for our approval; we want them to do it for their own growth.
Here are 4 ways to up the “why” content in your feedback:
- Start with “I notice…” and that will force you to get specific
- Invite students to practice being specific, saying “why” in reviewing each other’s work. Have them focus on their powers of observation with sentence stems like, “I saw…” “I heard…” “This made me feel… because…”
- Use questions that encourage self-reflection. “This made me wonder…because.” “Tell me more about…”
- When in doubt, fall back on a 3, 2, 1. This tool can come in lots of forms, but it encourages short, succinct, specific feedback if students are reflecting on their own work, or if they’re doing it for others. Here are a few variations:
- 3 words that describe… 2 things that stood out… 1 question
- 3 strong sentences…2 places that need more detail… 1 word that sums it up
- 3 memorable moments… 2 things this made me wonder… 1 suggestion
In the spirit of the upcoming holiday, the reason meaningful feedback is good for learners is also the reason it’s good for your Valentine. Consider the difference between: “I love you because you help me think through difficult problems, give me space when I need to process things alone, and support me when I want to try something new,” vs. “Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet, and so are you.” The first lets your sweetheart know what they are doing that is nurturing the relationship. The second rhymes, but what does it actually mean?
There are many good places to exercise our imaginations; interpreting feedback doesn’t have to be one of them. Make it meaningful. Say why. This is how we help each other grow.
Hooray For Monday is an award-winning weekly publication of Center for Inspired Teaching, a social change nonprofit organization that champions the power of curiosity and is dedicated to transforming the school experience from compliance-based to engagement-based. Inspired Teaching provides transformative, improvisation-based professional learning for teachers that is 100% engaging – intellectually, emotionally, and physically.
