Students need feedback to grow. They need guidance while introspecting on their performance, pinpointing the common mistakes, and setting better benchmarks to improve their achievements. When given in a positive and educational manner, feedback can go a long way to build a student’s self-esteem and motivate the child to break boundaries. However, a negative one, if not placed in the right manner, can be embarrassing and deprecating. Hence, both parents and teachers must craft their feedback in a strategic manner so that the student feels encouraged to learn from his/her mistakes and work upon them in the future.
The top 5 schools in Sonepat have clear rules in providing students with feedback which you can effectively implement with a student. Irrespective of your relationship with the child, parent or teacher, these ways are known to deliver the best outcomes and actually make the feedback essential to the student. While learning, mistakes are bound to happen but at no point can students become uncomfortable at making them.
Apply the compliment-correct-compliment rule
As the name goes, you should combine the compliments and the corrective actions in a perfect balance and present it to the student. If the matter at hand is discussing the failing grades in mathematics, start by explaining to the student how he/she improved from his/her last exam, follow it up with the weak areas he/she needs to work in and then point out his/her strengths in the subjects. Repeat this sequence until you have made all your points clear and let the student introspect from there. This process of feedback is like sugar-coating the bitter medicine, the one the student has to swallow.
Go for a one-to-one session
Pointing out the faults of a student in front of the whole classroom can be really demotivating. It can create a lifelong fear of doing anything out-of-the-box and stagnant the student’s life. Hence, the teachers of the best school in Sonepat always prefer individual sessions with such a student where a healthy discussion can ensue with any worry of embarrassment. You must also keep this as a priority. Avoid talking to the student about his/her mistakes in front of people and ask him/her to meet you after class. Then, take your time to explain the situation to the student and make sure to clarify the need for having the discussion.
Leave notes and comments for the student
This method of feedback is very handy while evaluating exam papers. A corrective action often acts best when explained immediately as the student can ponder upon it while still being in the effect of the mistake. If a student has solved a mathematical problem wrong because he/she chose to skip a step in between, deduct marks and leave a comment about the same in the answer sheet. Similarly, if some key points are missing from the answer in the history or literature paper, mention the fact that you were looking for those specific statements. The child will immediately make a note of these and will not repeat it in the future.
Compare the right action with a wrong one
At times, you may not have to clearly voice out the mistakes the student has made. Sit the child down, narrate an incident that you believe is the counter to his/her mistake and leave the student to think upon it. You can also follow a similar approach with answer sheets where you can show a student with a poor grade a paper that has full marks. Compare to show the child where the performing student got things right and where he/she can improve. You are not placing the feedback raw on the table, but allowing the child to deduce your intentions. Growing children are smart. Trust them to pick up the lessons from your discussions.
And sometimes, give no feedback at all
Not always will a student have an adult around to point out his/her mistakes. Clearly, sometimes you will have to leave the student with their faults and expect them to learn on their own. Here again, a balance is necessary. You cannot always ask a student to wait back after class. Then, the effectiveness of the session will reduce with time. Neither can you compare answer sheets after every exam. This will make the student feel that he/she is incapable of improving. Sometimes, you need not give any feedback. Let the child figure it himself/herself.
The method of giving feedback in Swarnprastha Public School, one of the best CBSE boarding schools in Sonepat, is exactly in line with the above methods. The faculty is adept in helping the students in the right manner where they tend to the individual needs of the student and craft their feedback accordingly. Pointing out the right and assisting a growing student is never easy. After all, their psychology is vulnerable during these times and requires just the right amount of encouragement. SPS teachers understand that very well.
