Feedback+as+an+essential+component+of+formative+assessment


 * Feedback as an essential component of formative assessment**

Good feedback generally focuses on behavior or the outcome of behavior rather than on the inherent characteristics of the person concerned. It leaves that person feeling positive and able to move forward. The timing of the feedback is important. It needs to be given as soon as possible after the event. The greater the delay, the less likely it is that the student will find it useful or be able or inclined to act on it. Feedback also needs to be clear. Handwritten feedback should be legible. The language should be comprehensive to students. You need to take care with style and tone as misunderstanding can easily arise. This particularly applies when feedback is written.
 * Introduction**

a) First it should be linked to the assessment criteria for the task. Students should be able to see how well they have met each criterion. b) Second, feedback needs to be relevant to the individual student, respecting the particular approach they took to the assessment task and other matters unique to the individual such as their previous work and stage of development. 2. You need to recall previous feedback you have given to avoid repetition and ensure variety. 3. It is helpful to keep photocopies of previous assignments or brief summaries of comments previously made.
 * Characteristics of Good Feedback**
 * A. Good feedback is relevant**
 * 1.** Feed back needs to be relevant in two way

1. Need to remember that the audience of feedback is students unlike conventional examination marking, your Feedback is intended to act and in order to do this it has to be sufficiently detailed. 2. The word sufficiently as important as too little information and too much information can be equally ineffective. 3. Information should be given on students strength. this is encouraging and good for motivation, it also helps students plan ahead. 4. Should also indicate priority areas for improvement or development and suggest how students might tackle these. 5. Suggestions for improvement need to be sensitively handled. They should be perceived by students to be attainable within their grasp, as research shows that students are most motivated when they feel they can achieve results with reasonable efforts. 6. Aim to help students move ahead one or two steps. 7. It is generally best to give students an overview of their work, complemented and exemplified by detailed examples such as in the margins of an essay.
 * B. Good feedback is Informative**

Good Feed back is a two way process. You should try to stimulate a response and continuing dialogue – whether this be on the topics that formed the basis of the assignment or the feed back it. You should also try to find out how helpful students find the feed back and how it might be improved in future. You could ask students individually or in a group to 1. Find one or two examples of feedback comments they found helpful. 2. Explain how they helped 3. Find one or two example of feedback comment they found unhelpful. 4. Explain why these were unhelpful 5. Say what they would welcome feedback on in future. This kind of exercise serves two useful purposes. First, it alerts students to the importance of considering and using feedback. Second, it gives you the information you need to reflect on your practice. 1) Good Feedback encourages self Assessment i. The importance of the student being proactive in assessment one part of this is their willingness to assess their own work critically and to internalize criteria and standards. ii. Asking students to send with their assignment their own assessments of them iii. Asking questions and inviting students to respond.
 * C. Good feedback encourages dialogue**
 * Thus we find that feed back is an essential component of formative assessment**.