The notes are developed by students of A.DE Batch 2017-18 for subject Classroom Assessment at GECE Badin Sindh Pakistan

1. FEEDBACK, CHARACTERISTICS AND TYPES OF FEEDBACK IN EDUCATION
Feedbackaccording to Biology.The processby whicha system(molecule,cell,ororganism) is
controlledorchangedbythe response itproduces.The intentistomaintainbalance withinthe system
so itsurvives.Negative feedbackisasignal sentback whena systemneedstoslow downorstop
completely.Yourstomachdoesn’tneedtoworkwhenyouaren’teating,forexample.Positive feedback
isthe opposite.Ratherthanslowingorstoppinga biological system,positivefeedbackisasignal that
increasesthe actionof the system.
Feedbackaccording to Engineering.The processwherebysome portionof the outputsignal of asystem
isfedback as input.
Feedbackaccording to Education.Feedback isinformationaboutastudent’sprogresstowardreachinga
goal or goals(Wiggins,2012, p. 10). Feedbackisinformationprovidedbyanagent(teacher,parent,
peer,book,self,experience) regardingaspectsof one’sperformance orunderstanding(Hattieand
Temperley,2007,p. 81).
What is feedbackon assessment?
Feedbackonstudents’assessmentperformance isavital elementintheirlearning. Itspurpose isto
justifytostudentshowtheirmarkor grade was derived,aswell astoidentifyandrewardspecific
qualitiesintheirwork,torecommendaspectsneedingimprovement,andtoguide studentsonwhat
stepsto take. Feedbackdefinesforstudentswhattheirteacherthinksisimportantforatopicor a
subject.Atitsbest,feedbackshould:
 guide studentstoadaptand adjusttheirlearning
♦ Strategiesguide teacherstoadaptandadjustteachingto
♦ Accommodate students’learningneedsbe apivotal feature of learningandassessment
♦ Design,notan add-onritual focusaroundcourse and unitlearningoutcomes
♦ Guide studentstobecome independentandself- reflective learnersandtheirowncritics
 acknowledge the developmental nature of learning.
Whocan provide Feedback?
How to Give Effective FeedbacktoYour Students:The Basics
Feedback isinformationthatyougive toyourstudentsthathelpsthemclose the gapbetweenwhere
theyare nowwiththeirwork,andwhere theycouldbe. The goal of feedbackistoprovide studentswith
insightthathelpsthemtoimprove theirperformance.
The answerto the question, Howtogive effective feedbacktoyourstudents? involvestwosteps.
1. Tell yourstudentabouttheircurrentlevel of performance
2. Tell themwhattheycoulddo to improve

2. Characteristics of effective feedbackonassessment
To addressthe typical concernsandproblemsencounteredbystudentsandstaff withassessment
feedback,the followingprinciplescanbe usedtoguide the processesof preparingandproviding
feedback:
 Feedbackshouldbe part ofthe assessmentdesign, withthe processesof receivingand
respondingtofeedbackbuiltintoandmade explicitinsubsequentlearningexperiencesand
grading.
 Feedbackshouldbe constructive, so that studentsfeel encouragedandmotivatedtoimprove
theirpractice,andcontributingto theirpositive self-esteemaslearners.
 Feedbackshouldbe timely,sothat studentscanuse it for subsequentlearningandworktobe
submitted.
 Feedbackshouldbe prompt, so thatstudentscan recall whattheydidand thoughtat the time.
 Feedbackshouldbe justified,bybeingbasedonclearandexplicitexplanationsof performance
againststatedcriteriaandstandards.
 Feedbackshouldbe supportive of learning,sothat studentshave clearindicationsof howto
improve theirperformanceinadevelopmentalprogression.
 Feedbackshouldbe focused, onachievement,noteffort;andonthe work,not the student.
 Feedbackshouldbe expressedintermsof the learning outcomes,so that studentscan relate
theirassessmentto the learningoutcomes,seeinghow theycanclose the gap betweentheir
currentand theirdesiredachievementof these outcomes.
 Feedbackshouldbe consequential,sothat itengagesstudentsbyrequiringthemtoattendto
the feedbackaspart of the grading.
 Feedbackshouldbe focusedon independence, sothatit leadsstudentstobeingcapable of
assessingtheirownwork,byfacilitatingtheirdevelopmentof critical reflectionand self-
assessment.
 Feedbackshouldbe efficient, sothatstaff can manage it effectively.
 Feedbackis NOT editing,spell-checkingorgrammar-checking. Studentsshouldbe requiredto
edittheirownwork,andwhere possible toresubmiteditedworkbasedonfeedbackaboutwhat
needstobe done.
 Self-regulation–feedbackshouldencourage the learner’sself-regulationbyenhancingself-
efficacyandself-esteem.Thisconceptcorrespondswithteachinglearnershow tolearn.

3. Types offeedback
1. Feedbackduring learning– Formative Feedback
Feedbackduringlearningallowsstudentstotake feedbackonboardimmediatelyandtotry to realize
improvementduringthe learningprocess.
Thisis oftenmore effective andproductivetothe learningexperience thanend-of taskfeedback
measures(usuallysummative),whichrequire studentstorememberthe feedbackandapplythe
recommendedstrategiestoa future task.
2. Feedbackafter learning– Summative Feedback
Too oftenfeedbackthatisprovidedtostudentsafterlearning hasconcludedisnotusedbythe students
to improve theirwork.Thisoftenresultsinteachersmakingthe same commentsoverandoveragain
and wonderingwhythe studenthasnottransferredthe informationtoanothercontext.Forsuch
feedbacktoinfluence subsequentlearning,studentsmustrememberit,translate itintoadvice thatis
transferable acrosstasks,andapplyitthe nexttime theyencounteratask inwhichthislearningcould
apply.Generally,while strongstudentscanoftendothis,strugglingstudentsfinditmore difficult.
©Feedbackduringandafterlearningshould:
• Focuson whatis beinglearnt(learningintention) andhow studentsshouldgoaboutit(success
criteria)
• Provide informationonhowandwhythe studenthasor has not met the criteria
• Provide strategiestohelpthe studenttoimprove.
3. Formal feedback
Formal feedbackcanbe providedthroughstructuredconferenceswithspecificgoals.
Teacherscan meetwitha fewstudentsaday or a weekdependingonspecificprojects, deadlines,and
individualstudentneeds.
It isimportantto setup these conferencesinastructuredwaywitha focus on individualized goalsso
bothteacherand studentmake gooduse of theirtime.
Hintsfor student-teacherconferences:
• Lookat studentworkbeforehand
• Use a checklistorfeedbackformthatstudentscanuse as a reference formakingrevisions
• Focuson twoto three itemsthatneedworkand show how to improve them
• Make time for the studenttoask questionsandgive input.
Whenteachersuse formal conferencingalongwithinformalfeedback,studentsare betterprotected
fromfailure andsetup forsuccess.
4. Informal Feedback
Informal feedbackcanoccurat anytimesas itis somethingthatemergesspontaneouslyinthe moment
or duringaction.Therefore informalfeedbackrequiresthe buildingof rapportwithstudentstoeffectively
encourage,coachor guide themindailymanagementanddecision-makingforlearning.
Thismightoccur inthe classroom,overthe phone, inanonline forumorvirtual classroom.
5. StudentPeer feedback
There isno longerneedforteacherstobe the onlyexpertswithinacourse.Withbasicinstructionandongoing
support,studentscanlearnto give qualityfeedback,whichishighlyvaluedby peers.Providingstudentswithregular
opportunitiestogive andreceive peerfeedbackenrichestheirlearningexperiencesanddevelops
theirprofessionalskillset.

4. 6. Constructive feedback
Thistype of feedbackisspecific,issue-focusedandbased onobservations.There are fourtypesof
constructive feedback:
 Negative feedback – corrective comments about past behavior. Focuses on behavior that
wasn’t successful and shouldn’t be repeated.
 Positive feedback – supporting comments about past behavior. Focuses on behavior that was
successful and should be continued.
 Negative feedforward – corrective comments about future performance. Focuses on behavior
that should be avoided in the future.
 Positive feedforward – encouraging comments about future behavior. Focused on behavior that
will improve performance in the future.
7. Intrinsicfeedback:It is feedbackfrom one’sownself e.g.apersonengagedinthinkingand
ponderingoverideas,evaluatingoptionsandassessingtheiroutcomes.
Examples” For simple tasks,youcan dothisthrough providingthe answer.Youcouldhighlighta
misspellingandwrite the correctspellingabove it,ormarka questionwrongwhile alsoprovidingthe
rightanswer.”