Giving Useful Feedback

Some General Guidelines

• The feedback should be about the presentation, not about the person– “When you explained the last step of cell division,

I found it difficult to understand the part about…” – NOT “…I found you hard to understand…”– “The professionalism of your appearance helped

me feel that this was important.”– NOT “You looked good up there.”– NOT “You did a really good job.”

Some General Guidelines

• The feedback should be specific, not general – “The spaces for me to write my data on the

activity page made it easier for me to stay on track.”

– “By coming in dressed as a clown, you engaged my attention really well, so I paid full attention.”

– NOT “I liked your activity page”– NOT “The presentation was really fun.”

Some General Guidelines

• The feedback should be tied to known expectations, outcomes, concepts being practiced.– “It was exciting to be able to make my own

observations and collect evidence for myself about the worms.”

– NOT “I would have liked a more critical approach to the ethics of using of living things as part of teaching.”

Some General Guidelines

• It should provide guidance for improvement, and be based on already-present strengths whenever possible.– “You had some very strong open-ended questions

such as…even more of those would have helped me think more deeply about the ideas.”

– NOT “You only had two open-ended questions; you should have more.”

– NOT “It was OK, but something to watch for is that you say ‘um’ a lot, so try to have your ideas in mind before you start talking.”

Some General Guidelines

• Good feedback takes deliberate and conscientious practice! For most people:– It is not easy.– It does not come naturally.– It is not the same as the way we talk to others in

casual contexts.– It is not a “mixed bag” of good and bad.– Should only be given to people we already

respect, care about and want to support.

Critique the Critiques

1. You looked nervous. Maybe you should practice more before you present.

2. This was just an awesome activity—really, just awesome—I mean, like, truly amazing.

3. The simple materials you used could be found anywhere, which reinforced that science is all around us.

4. Your equipment was really great. I think using science equipment like that will help kids wonder more about how the equipment is used in real science.

Some Syntax

Feedback Syntax• When you…, it helped me to…• The…in your lesson made me think of…in our

class discussions.

Response Syntax• Can you tell me more about…• So, do I understand that you’re saying…• Thank you for that.