4- Activity 7: Giving Feedback

Constructive feedback is one of the most valuable contributions anyone can make to another person’s learning. Whether as a student or as a teacher each one of us has the aptitude to offer useful feedback to other people that will help them to learn more effectively.

By offering another person feedback about their work, it indicates you are both affirming the worth of the person and offering them your views on something into which they have put some effort.

Everyone has the capacity for giving useful feedback and some people use it more effectively than others. There are many characteristics of worthwhile feedback but the most important is the way in which it is given. The tone, the style and the content should be consistent and provide the constant message: ‘I appreciate you and what you have done and whatever else I say should be taken in this context”. In providing helpful feedback one should be:

·         Realistic

·         Specific

·         Sensitive to the goals of others

·         Timely

·         Descriptive

·         Observational

·         Direct

·         Aware

·         Positive

In accepting Feedback one should be:

·         Aware

·         Attentive

·         Explicit

·         Silent

This activity taught me a very important lesson that whatever feedback we give, we need to pay keen attention to the tone and style since this can adversely affect the relationship with our students and other stakeholders.