“Please let me know what you thought this tip” missing the “of” The idea is good. The important point is to focus on what is going well in order to preserve and enhance it. But just vague things like “good job” are useless or worse. All feedback, compliments included, should be meaningful. For most cases, the best is actually to avoid both criticism and complements. Just get students to succeed by focusing on each thing they do right, giving them just the feedback of “that’s right” or less. Check out https://www.npr.org/2018/06/04/616127481/when-everything-clicks-the-power-of-judgment-free-learning Beginning teachers spend too much time saying meaningless positive… Read more »
Hi Aaron, Thanks for the correction–I beat you to it! And thank you for this thoughtful comment. I wouldn’t go as far as you do, but I’d say that feedback is USUALLY most effective when it’s specific. Students need to know what they’re doing wrong, and what they’re doing right. “Good Job” is too vague in pretty much any circumstance for the student to know what they did well. About judgement-free learning: Weaning students off their need to please their teacher, and instead encouraging sources of intrinsic motivation (feelings of satisfaction for accomplishing something, or enjoying the beautiful music they’re… Read more »
This is something I’ve found that is really effective in boosting confidence and trust between teacher and student. Thank you so much for doing this!
Yay! Thanks for the note.
“Please let me know what you thought this tip” missing the “of” The idea is good. The important point is to focus on what is going well in order to preserve and enhance it. But just vague things like “good job” are useless or worse. All feedback, compliments included, should be meaningful. For most cases, the best is actually to avoid both criticism and complements. Just get students to succeed by focusing on each thing they do right, giving them just the feedback of “that’s right” or less. Check out https://www.npr.org/2018/06/04/616127481/when-everything-clicks-the-power-of-judgment-free-learning Beginning teachers spend too much time saying meaningless positive… Read more »
Hi Aaron, Thanks for the correction–I beat you to it! And thank you for this thoughtful comment. I wouldn’t go as far as you do, but I’d say that feedback is USUALLY most effective when it’s specific. Students need to know what they’re doing wrong, and what they’re doing right. “Good Job” is too vague in pretty much any circumstance for the student to know what they did well. About judgement-free learning: Weaning students off their need to please their teacher, and instead encouraging sources of intrinsic motivation (feelings of satisfaction for accomplishing something, or enjoying the beautiful music they’re… Read more »
Great tip! Thanks!
Sure thing man!
Thanks, Rob. That was good advice. It is literally the only way that I have found through which I can offer constructive criticism to my students.
Sandwich theory: Complement | Criticism | Complement.
Whatever works, eh? Thanks for your note.