Is this the best way to deliver whole-class feedback?

Too often methods of whole-class feedback are overcomplicated, writes English teacher Andrew Atherton as he shares his approach
27th January 2023, 6:00pm
Is this the best way to deliver whole-class feedback?

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Is this the best way to deliver whole-class feedback?

https://www.tes.com/magazine/teaching-learning/secondary/best-way-deliver-whole-class-feedback

The premise of whole-class feedback is simple: read the students’ work, make a note of common misconceptions, and reteach the group based on these misconceptions.

Yet, as is so often the case in education, things that seem straightforward are often far more complex.

Over many years, I’ve tweaked and changed my approach to whole-class feedback, and, after several iterations, I finally have a model that I really believe in. Here’s how it works.  

My strategy begins with a template. It’s divided into two areas: defining excellence and a list of possible next steps. Each student has a copy of this template in their books. 


Whole-class feedback: identifying excellence

When I mark work, I set aside an hour to read through a class set, with a highlighter in hand. 

Every time I read something I like, I highlight it. 

I might make very light marginal annotations, but this stage is more about the highlighter than the pen. The main goal is to draw attention to the positives and indicate to students that their work is valued, while also correcting the odd spelling or grammar error.

At the same time, I am actively looking out for moments of excellence.


More teaching and learning:


I do this by choosing an area of focus - in English, this could be depth of analysis, precision and fluidity of embedded quotation, coherence of argument, use of context to illuminate, and so on. I then select two examples, taken from students’ work, of what excellence in that area looks like

I jot these examples down on my personal copy of the template, which I will later take into the whole-class feedback lesson. In students’ books, the excellence section stays blank for now.

Next steps

The next steps list is a pre-filled list of skills, attributes or features that lead to success. What goes on to this list will vary from subject to subject, but the process of thinking about success in this way is hugely beneficial for teachers and students of all subjects. 

Once I’ve finished marking an essay, I’ll highlight one or two relevant targets from the list for each student. I’ll also make a note, on my own template, of any recurring issues that will need to be addressed.

As this list is pre-filled, this creates very little additional workload.  

The feedback lesson

After the initial marking process, it’s time for the feedback lesson. The first thing I do is hand back the books, and ask students to read their work, paying particular attention to the parts I have highlighted. This is a great way to show students that I’ve read and enjoyed their work, but it also scaffolds a metacognitive process of self-reflection.

Next, we move on to defining excellence. I begin by reiterating that there are certain things that some of us are doing really well already, but I want every single person in the room to aspire to do these things just as well.

After defining the first aspect of excellence, I then live model an example of what it looks like, usually taken from student work but anonymised. The template is left blank so that students can write along with me. 

As I live model, I explain exactly what makes it excellent, disclosing the moves the student has taken to arrive here. There’s also a motivational boost for students to see their work being publicly, but anonymously, celebrated and commended. 

As we read student work, we highlight one or two of the targets in the next steps list. 

I then ask students to look at their specific targets. I usually try to select examples of excellence that help to address common next steps within the class, and so many of these personal targets have already been explained. However, I might also pick out a couple of other common ones, reteaching or offering further examples as appropriate.

For whatever time we have left in this lesson, students complete a task that will benefit everyone. The task can take many different forms, whether reapplying feedback from the lesson in another similar but different context or extending their thinking around the topic in some way. Ideally, it should be connected to the already outlined definitions of excellence or next steps, helping to bring together the different strands of the lesson.

Although this is the end of the lesson, the work done is simply a snapshot of a much longer journey and will feed into future cycles as we continue to monitor common misconceptions, looking to see whether students act on their next steps and seeking out other moments of excellence. 

Andrew Atherton is an English teacher in Oxfordshire

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