Guiding information 4.6 : giving good feedback
Please read these principles of constructive feedback and think about how they relate to you giving feedback to a teacher whose class you have just visited.
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Principles of constructive feedback |
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1. The feedback comes at the right time, i.e. in good time for a fault to be remedied.
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2. It lets recipients measure their practice against the standards.
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3. It lets recipients know how they are doing.
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4. It lets recipients highlight their strong points and areas for improvement.
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5. It lets recipients know how long they have to improve.
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6. It lets recipients know what support they can expect from you.
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7. It also comes when someone is doing a good job i.e. it lets them know when they are performing to standard.
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8. It offers specific praise – what was particularly good about a job or behaviour etc.
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9. It seeks to open up a dialogue on the best way forward.
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10. It is two-way, allowing the recipient to probe the comments and be involved in the decision-making for further action.
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11. It describes behaviour that you recently observed, and it puts the behaviour in context of overall performance.
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12. It helps the recipient to see beyond current performance and clarifies opportunities for further development.
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(This list is adapted from one in R. Bees & F. Bees Constructive Feedback, 1996, Institute of Personnel and Development.)
Please check that you understand all these principles. Which of these would you not feel comfortable discussing with a colleague? Why?
Consider feedback that you have given recently, either as a result of a classroom lesson visit or as a result of a task that someone undertook.