One of the themes and hallmarks of the Communication and English teaching team is the ability to shape feedback to suit all learners, in any vocational group at any level of study. It should be meaningful, contextualised, clear, appropriate and supportive.
When I think of feedback, and how and why it should be utilised, I am oft reminded of this handy quote - "Learning without feedback is like archery in the dark." (Cross, 1996)
An innovative method of providing feedback to learners is taken up here by Andrew. What follows is a set of feedback prompts, which was devised primarily when we were in lockdown, with all delivery online. What is inventive about this, is that whilst they are directives, they are
cleverly student focused and can be tweaked if necessary.
The feedback that is showcased below was used in the Communication (NC) Unit, which is a level 6 Communication and English Unit and is demanding. Like much of our innovative Learning, Teaching and Assessment strategy philosophy, this was discussed by Andrew at a team meeting and circulated to all members of the teaching team.
The questions are broken down into three main sub-headings, namely Summary, Analysing the effect of the style, language and structure used and Evaluation.
Andrew's feedback phrasebank can be used in a formative and summative context, and is entirely flexible by nature of its design.
The style of supportive language used in Andrew's feedback model should be commended. Here it is...
Communication (NC) feedback phrasebank
Q1 - You looked to pick out some of the writer's
piece and were straight to the point when it came to relaying information. You
included the most important points included in the text and were able to
provide a solid overview. You used your own words as often as possible and
avoided using technical terms or jargon.
Q1. You summarised well and avoided using technical
terms and jargon. You focused only on the main information and supporting
details which helped you to form a strong answer. You knew to use your own
words as often as possible.
Q1 - You gave an excellent summary of the text
which stuck to the main points and supporting details. You knew to use your own
words and managed to not overcomplicate the relayed information.
Q1 - You summed up the main points well and in your
own words. You made sure your answer remained free from bias and opinions. You
avoided using overly technical language and relayed the information really
well.
Q1 - You fully understand how to pick out the main
points of an article in your own words. You avoided using the writer's words
wherever possible and stuck with clear, concise language. You knew to remain
neutral when relaying the key information from the text.
Q1 - You clearly understand how to summarise and
pick out the main points in a text. You were able to relay the writer's
information in your own words. The key information was short, sharp and
concise. Supporting detail was provided at the end of the question.
Q1 - Excellent example of a summary. You made sure
you relayed the information in a sharp, concise way. You didn't overcomplicate
the question and made sure your answer was free of analysis and opinion.
Q1 - Your summary contained the key information
from the text. You were careful to use your own words wherever possible. Your
ability to avoid technical language and jargon was useful when answering this
question.
Q1 - Your summary was clear and picked out the main
points that the writer had made in the passage. You used your own words as
often as possible and made sure you also included some of the supporting detail
from the text.
Q1 - Excellent summary that hammered home all of
the main points made by the writer. You made sure you used your own words as
often as possible. Your writing was clear and to the point.
Q1 - You summarised the passage well and made sure
to use your own words as much as possible. You steered clear of using technical
terms unnecessarily and provided a clear run down of the main points for the
reader.
Q2 - I'm going to get you to provide some quoted
examples of the language you described. This will help you to fit the evidence
criteria.
Q2 - I'm going to get you to look at the
structuring part of this question again. You should look at recurring ideas in
the text and how they are ordered. For instance, is there a point that is made
at the beginning, is expanded later on and then is referred to at the end?
Q2 - I'm going to get you to look at structure
again. For this, you should looking for a recurring idea in the passage. For
instance, something that comes up in the beginning, the middle and the end. We
will talk through this in class.
Q2 - An excellent level of analysis on show here.
You looked carefully at the style, structure and word choice of the writer and
commented on the reasons behind each. Your answer was very carefully thought
out.
Q2 - You commented on the style of the piece and
provided quotations where the writing exemplified this. Your analysis of the
language and structure were very well measured. All examples provided were
relevant.
Q2 - I'm going to get you to look at structure
again. For this you're looking at ideas that occur multiple times in the
passage. For instance, is something mention at the beginning of the text, in
the middle and at the end of the text to reinforce a point?
Q2 - I'm going to get you to look at
structure/ordering again. Look to pick out some ideas that develop throughout
the text ie. what seems to come up in the beginning, middle and end of the text
and what point is the writer aiming to make?
Q2 - You commented on style, structure and language
in a way that provided analysis of the text overall. You used relevant examples
to show where the writer was aiming to appeal to a certain type of
reader.
Q2 - This is the question I'm going to get you to
look at again. I need a wee bit more from you on the structure of the piece. In
this context, the structure refers to the development of ideas. For instance,
does an idea come up again and again? If you could find an example of that in
the beginning, middle and end, you're sorted.
Q2 - You referred to language, structure and style
in your second answer and provided relevant examples from the text. You offered
a good amount of analysis in this section and commented on the different
strategies used by the writer.
Q2 - You knew how to pick out the writer's style
based on the words and phrases that were used in the text. You also highlight
how the language added to the arguments the writer was making. You knew to make
reference to the beginning, the middle and the end when referring to
structure.
Q3 - Your evaluation offered an insight into how
you rated the piece based on the ability to reach the target audience and meet
its purpose. You offered indicators of strength and weakness and backed up
arguments with evidence from the text where possible.
Q3 - You evaluated well and put forward arguments
on the general successes of the document. You were keen to use evidence where
necessary and ordered your answer in such a way that made your points flow.
Q3 - A very good evaluation that was full of
evidence and strong arguments from yourself. You commented on the writer's
strengths and weaknesses and were keen to point to specific examples
throughout.
Q3 - Your evaluative skills were on show in your
final answer. You knew to make sure you used evidence to strengthen your
arguments on the writer's successes and blind spots. You were fair and balanced
in your approach.
Q3 - You picked out the key strengths and weaknesses
of the text. Each time you highlighted a strength or weakness, you point to an
area in the text that exemplified this. Your evaluative skills were very a
strong point. You were able to comment on the overall effectiveness of the
piece in relation to the purpose and target reader.
Q3 - Your evaluation skills were well documented in
your answer to Q3. You picked out some of the writer's key strengths and
weaknesses and backed up your take on the article with evidence.
Q3 - Your evaluation was strong and covered a lot
of material from the text. Your ability to pick out strengths and weaknesses in
the writing while maintaining an analytical approach helped you to create a
robust answer.
Q3 - This is a good evaluation. You used evaluative
language throughout the answer and commented on the overall effectiveness of
the document based on the evidence you explored. A very solid answer with lots
of quoted examples.
Q3 - A very good evaluation that offered some good
analysis of the writer's choices. You picked out some of the key strengths and
weaknesses and provided quoted examples to back the arguments you made.
Q3 - Very good evaluation that summed up the
strengths and weaknesses of the piece. Relevant evidence was referred to which
only made your argument stronger. You provided an excellent level of analysis.
Q3 - Your evaluation was carefully thought out. You
provided examples of the writer's strong and weak points in the form of quoted
material. You gave us some good overall analysis of the piece in terms of its
target audience.
