| Image may be NSFW. Clik here to view.  |
| My AS students study the different feedback to work out which one is theirs. |
This year I have looked to develop the process of giving feedback to my A-Level classes. I have often found that the pressure of time, of completing the course, has meant that I have not looked to develop the process of giving feedback. I believe I have missed a trick in the past by simply giving students targets. The successful students have acted on their targets but, too often, sections of the class have made similar mistakes in future work. I have therefore looked to develop several processes that have improved the retention of the targets I have given.
1) Not naming essay feedback.
My AS class is roughly 15. When I have marked an essay I have written the feedback and targets on separate sheets of numbered card. I have then handed the 'unmarked' essays back and put the feedback around the room. My students have had to select which card they think belongs to their work. I have then read out the numbers and the students have said which card they have picked.
| Image may be NSFW. Clik here to view.  |
| One of my students compares two different sets of feedback to see which one is hers. |
Teacher "Whose got feedback number One?" student "Louise".
Me "Two?" student "James".
Me "Three?" student "Matthew". Etc...At the end of reading out the numbers I tell the students how many have got the correct card (I do not tell them who is correct and who has the wrong card).
I then repeat this process several times in the hope that more of them get the correct feedback.
Reflections
+ I have found that this works really well.
+ The students are engaged, one student said "Yes! I love this!" When they walked into the lesson the second time I did the activity. I think the combination of trying to work out a puzzle and the competitive element of the activity help promote engagement. + The students actually read the targets on the cards! In the past I don't think that this has always really happened.
+ The students help each other. Comments like "Well you've put this in your conclusion so these can't be your targets."
+ In the next piece of assessed work the students have remembered more of the targets I had set. One student even wrote their targets out from their last piece of work along with a detailed explanation of how they felt they had met them in this essay!
2) Producing exam feedback videos
Last year I started to produce some ExplainEverything exam feedback videos for my GCSE students. I found that they worked well in promoting independent reflection. Developing from this I produced a series of six videos for the AS mock exam. The students had to watch the videos and produce guidebooks to help them improve in the future. This took them two lessons. Whilst they were watching the videos (on iPad's) I was freed up to go around the class and offer one-to-one help. Below is an example of one of the videos, the rest can be found on my MisterWestylish YouTube channel.
Reflections
+ Again this was an engaging task. All the students were on task for both the lessons on this.
+ It was independent, personalised learning as the students were able to pause, rewind and replay sections of the clips to suit their own needs.
+ I benefited from being in two places at once. I was able to offer individual help and answer specific questions whilst the rest of the group got on with their own work. In the past (with a kind of exam lecture going on) the whole group would have to stop so that I could deal with individual questions.
+ After the first lesson the students were tasked with re-writing one of their answers. In the second lesson I was able to mark all of these one-to-one with the each student whilst the rest of the class got on with their exam guides (again I felt like I was in two places at once).
+ Progress was made. The quality of the exam guides was excellent and the re-written answers all represented significant improvements on the original work.
3) Videoing essay feedback
Like many A-level teachers I often give back essays that require further improvement and re-drafting, especially at A2. In the past I have found that students can often forget what I meant by the feedback I have given. They either are conscientious and come back to check, or they don't and their work doesn't improve. This year I have trialled videoing the essay feedback. The students video their essay using their phones/iPads whilst I give the feedback. If they then get home and have forgotten exactly what I have said they can simply replay the video and here it again.
Reflections
+ This is pretty simple but it seems to have worked. I have not used it in every case but think I will next year.
+ I don't know why I haven't done this before.
Overall, I believe that the students have focused more on the feedback I have given than in previous years, this has led to less repetition of targets and hopefully greater progress. The students have also been engaged in these activities and it has allowed me to develop the different types of activity I set within an A-Level lesson.
All of these activities have made essay and exam feedback feel more formative than summative and helped students to see the process that goes into improving exam work.
I hope you have found this interesting and I welcome any comments.