What Are Your Thoughts About Feedback? Do You View It as a Gift?
Consider the last time someone gave you feedback. How did you respond and why? Perhaps it felt like a personal attack - that you were being judged - or that it threatened your control. While feedback is a complicated matter, it is built on the premise that it is crucial for growth. If given skillfully, it is intended to boost performance, increase self-awareness, motivate individuals and improve overall results by clarifying expectations and highlighting strengths and weaknesses. Are you convinced? Obviously, your position regarding feedback is based on your experiences.
Recently, two of our many talented teachers, Tiffany Reeser and Carla Richards, along with Andrew Shauver, a consultant from Ingham Intermediate School District and a Mason parent, agreed to share their success with feedback with elementary and secondary students. Their audience was teachers enrolled in the New Teacher Academy.
Carla, Tiffany and Andrew provided concrete examples of how they teach their students the what and why of feedback, followed by modeling the how. For them, evidence of impact has been stunning, and students now ask for feedback from teachers and peers in order to revise and improve their work.
Make no mistake, not everyone in attendance at this amazing session was gaga at the beginning, likely based on their own experiences, but by the end of the session, individual processing was at an all-time high for good reason.
The participants had experienced not only quality professional development, but it was provided by local talent who had evidence of success with the Mason student population. According to the research, peer-to-peer interaction and training are optimal for professional development because they enable the design of rapid response to the needs, concerns and challenges teachers have right now. Another benefit is that colleagues are going through the same issues with students, and they can model what’s working for them.
Do you have new thoughts about feedback? Ask yourself, “In my personal or professional life, what might I reconsider and what new actions regarding feedback might I take?” Consider contacting our presenters for resources! Thoughts can turn into actions, actions that ensure feedback is a gift.
