Overview
Feedback is an essential component of effective assessment in any course, regardless of the modality. There are several things you can do to ensure the feedback you give your students is fair and effective.
Meaningful and Constructive Feedback:
- Is returned quickly so that students can work toward improvement right away.
- Enhances critical thinking and reflection.
- Develops better student-faculty relationships.
- Fosters a mindset that feedback and correction lead to learning.
- Increases student motivation because students feel the instructor is interested in their success.
- Shows what they did well and where they can improve.
- Provides additional resources for improvement.
Tips to Ensure Effective Feedback:
- Establish and communicate clear evaluation criteria. Use these grading rubric resources for assignments and assessments to ensure students understand what is expected of them and how they will be assessed.
- Set aside time each day or week for grading and feedback, and let students know when and how you will provide feedback for each assignment or assessment. Delayed feedback can hinder student progress and engagement.
- Recognize and respect the diverse backgrounds, experiences, and learning styles of your students. Tailor your feedback to meet individual needs and preferences.
- Be kind. Emphasize areas where students have done well before addressing areas that need improvement and think about how you would feel reading your comment before you share it with the student.
- Encourage a growth mindset by framing feedback as an opportunity for learning and growth rather than as criticism. Offer opportunities for students to reflect on and respond to your feedback, either through revisions or written reflections. For more view the Developing a Growth Mindset with Carol Dweck video.
- Be aware of unconscious biases that may affect your feedback. Evaluate your feedback practices to ensure that they are fair and unbiased. Consider seeking input from colleagues or utilizing anonymous grading to minimize bias. For more visit the Canvas page on How do I hide student names in SpeedGrader
- Consider providing a mixture of automated feedback on quizzes or low-stakes assignments and more extensive comments on high stakes assignments.
- Consider including your comments in a short video for a more personal touch. For how to do this in Canvas visit the How do I leave feedback comments for student submissions in SpeedGrader page.
- Not all feedback has to be provided by you. Peer feedback can be a valuable tool for learning and reflection. For how to do this in Canvas visit the How do I create a peer review assignment page.
- Use the Canvas Gradebook to record audio or video feedback and use the comment library to help streamline your grading. For more visit the How do I leave feedback comments for student submissions in SpeedGrader page and the How do I use the Comment Library in SpeedGrader page
Resources
For more, review these additional resources:
Support
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