This document discusses using technology to improve feedback for students. The author notes that traditional feedback methods were often too late and did not help students improve. The author now focuses feedback during formative assessments using technology like screencasting, pencasting, screensharing, and collaborative documents. This provides timely, specific feedback to help both students and teachers. Students learn expectations and how to improve, while teachers can adjust instruction. Integrating feedback guidelines and applying feedback steps has increased student improvement.

1. Feedback 2.0
Using Technology to Improve
Feedback

2. Context
• I teach 9th and 10th grade reading and writing.
• I facilitate classroom technology integration
across grades and disciplines
• I work in a very small boarding school

3. THE LIGHTNING BOLT

4. My students did not know how to give
peer feedback
• Share with your
classmate:
– Something that you
found surprising,
interesting, or funny
– Something you didn’t
understand
– Something that you have
also experienced
– Your perception of the
piece as a whole

5. How I used to do feedback

6. Why it didn’t work
It didn’t help STUDENTS It didn’t help ME
• Too late to encourage • Too late to adjust
improvement instruction
• Felt like criticism • Students didn’t necessarily
• Students couldn’t always have the ability to apply
understand or generalize feedback independently
the suggestions I would
make
• Students tended to ignore
positives and hyper-focus
on suggestions

7. TOO OFTEN, FEEDBACK IS A
TEACHER’S WAY OF JUSTIFYING A
GRADE, RATHER THAN A WAY TO
HELP STUDENTS IMPROVE

8. Effective Feedback…
• SPECIFIC • SHOWS STUDENTS
– Focus on the most HOW TO DO IT
important, or just – The more we can show
choose an area to look students how to do it,
at. WHILE they are doing it,
• TIMELY the more effective our
feedback is.
– Always give time to
process and apply
feedback

9. Using Technology to Improve Feedback
WAYS TO CHANGE

10. TRACK CHANGES
Why I liked it Why it didn’t really work
• Everyone already had it • Still provided feedback too
• Easy to use late and without enough
• When STUDENTS use it, I demonstration of how to
can see their process make the changes they
needed.

11. THAT IS WHEN I DECIDED…

12. Focus all feedback on formative
assessments
• Now, summative assessments receive only a
rubric with grade. Students who want more
explanation need to set up a conference with
me.
• ALL of my time and energy is focused on the
feedback stages of student work, because that
is where learning happens.

13. Example summative assessment

14. A good feedback system…
Helps STUDENTS Helps TEACHERS
• Understand expectations • Discover student strengths
• Have direction for future • Know where students are
work faltering
• Correct misconceptions or • Adjust instruction to meet
gaps in understanding class needs
• Provide individual support
and challenge

15. Why Technology?
Student Conferences Technology
• TIME • Not location specific
• Proximity • Not time specific
• Management • Asynchronous
• One-time only • Review Available

16. Make it specific, timely, and instructive
• Screencasting
• Pencasting
• Screensharing
• Collaborative documents
• Video chat
• Digital conference
• Interactives

17. Screencasting

18. Ways to do it
• On your computer w/ screencasting software
(jing, camtasia, snapz)
• On the ipad
• Using a document Camera
• Using an interactive whiteboard

20. What I learned
• Focus on 1 or 2 things • In my example
max – Focused on introduction
• Use what you learn to – Introduced idea of
adjust future instruction paragraphs but made
note to provide one-on-
one instruction about it
next class

21. Pencasting
• Use a livescribe pen to record feedback; allow
students to access the pen as part of class.
• I set up feedback stations that included peer
feedback, self-assessment screencast,
livescribe feedback, and specific trait tools.

22. Screensharing
• I use join.me
• There are lots of others!
• Students can share w/ group or just teacher
• Teacher can see multiple screens at a time
• Especially helpful for non-writing assignments.

23. Collaborative
Documents
Google Docs
Allows you to watch as students write
Participate in real time with students
as they are writing
Other options:
Zoho
Microsoft Live
ThinkFree
Ipads

24. Interactives
• Student-created bank of videos demonstrating
common issues or mistakes
• Can ask students to view as part of the
feedback process
• I do it using a YouTube channel that all
students have account info; use the unlisted
video feature

25. Integrating Feedback
• Introductory Activities
– Use an example students will connect with (I did a
bad outfit. Had student talk to a teddy bear)
• T-Chart (Feedback vs. Criticism)
– Stays on the wall the entire year
• Guidelines for Helpful Feedback
– Students create a list and keep in notebooks
• Steps for applying feedback to my work.
– Made a HUGE difference!

27. Guidelines for Helpful Feedback
• Shows you really care
• Kind
• Gives good ideas and suggestions
• Wants people to do better
• Not personal
• Looks for ways to help

28. Steps for applying feedback
1. Get in a feedback frame of mind
2. Carefully take in the feedback
3. Determine which feedback you agree with,
which you disagree with, and which you are
not sure about
4. Do what you can on your own; seek out help
when you can’t do it on your own
5. Remember OUT LOUD

29. Reflection
• The biggest effect was providing out loud
reading.
• Introducing feedback as a concept was well
worth the class time
• Focused feedback actually takes up LESS of my
time
• Student improvement has increased
dramatically; students say they feel I get to
know them better now.

30. Q&A
• Melissa Poole
• InClassNow@gmail.com
• Twitter: @InClassNow