Quote-Day: Day 16

All #feedback is not created #equal. If it isn't #evidence based, and you can't act on it, it isn't worth giving. #edchat #QuoteADay #Day16

I had the opportunity to wrap-up this year's recertification for lead evaluators, a series of workshops that administrators here in New York State engage in yearly to refresh our understanding of the needs for effective performance review for educators.

During our session, one of the topics that was discussed focused on feedback, and how everyone gives feedback, but not everyone gives feedback that is useful.

I really agree with this statement.  As a teacher, I had an epiphany during my second year of teaching.  I had been providing feedback to students that was very basic, and not surprisingly, I wasn't seeing the changes I hoped I would see.

To address this, I made sure that every time I provided feedback, I supplied students with at least one relevant question tied back to their work.  Though this took longer to do, it saved time in the long run as students were more likely to change behavior (or at least see me to discuss my feedback further).

The key tenets of the feedback I began to supply?  The feedback had to be based on evidence from the student work, and, just as importantly, students had to be able to act on the feedback (in other words, it was reachable and appropriate for where students currently "were").

Today, working primarily with teachers and leaders, I make it a habit  of supplying feedback in exactly the same way.  Regardless of where we are in our lives, we are all learners seeking to further our understanding of the world around us.  If we are going to take the time to supply feedback, why not make sure it is meaningful?