Feedback Letting Students Know That the Work They Complete Counts

The Research and Development Center for Teacher Education at the University of Texas has determined various methods of helping students stay on task and engaged in learning in areas of routine /preparation, feedback, attention span, distractions, transitions, instructions, and participation by “efficiently managing classroom time, space, materials, and student” (Anderson, 1979).

Routine -Preparation

According to Anderson, time is a resource in the classroom; time is not something to be wasted. She suggests “materials and supplies should be ready in advance of activities so that teachers may spend most of the school day in actual instruction. Also, more effective classroom mangers in the study had regular procedures for turning in completed work.

Feedback –Letting Students Know that the Work They Complete Counts

Before starting an assignment, students should know where to turn in the work after it is complete. Have you ever finished an assignment without knowing where to turn it in? If so, you may have asked, “What do I do with this?” Typically, the reply is, “Hold onto it until I collect all of them.” The next day, the work is collected, and the 3rd day, it is finally graded and returned to you. By this point, your interest in knowing how you did on the assignment has probably worn off- making your efforts seem less significant. Generally, most people enjoy instant feedback on how they are doing. For example, you wouldn’t want to wait 3 days for results of who won at the end of a game nor would you wish to wait 3 days to receive an answer to how you can improve on your school work. Therefore, different teachers have different preferences of how to inspire student productivity. Anderson’s effective managers suggest:

 Students knew to turn completed work in to a fixed area and where they would receive the graded

 One teacher set up mail boxes for each student to check each afternoon.

 Another teacher established the first 15 minutes of the mourning to return the previous day’s

 Other teachers set aside time each morning to review work and provide feedback to students that

needed it.

 Effective managers circulated around the room during seatwork so each student was checked

frequently.

 They regularly displayed quality student work from walls or the ceiling. Also consider- have you ever completed an assignment only to learn it is not going to be counted for a grade? Knowing that what you do in class matters is a motivation that can encourage your brain on the books rather and train your attention span. (Also, getting up to turn work in would give people a chance to stretch their legs!)

Attention Span

Within the study, the less effective manager “relied heavily on long stretches of seatwork for all students with few or no breaks while more effective managers selected activities determined by an understanding of what students needed in order to stay on-task” (Anderson, 1979).

Distractions

Less effective managers would “launch into a regular routine immediately after a holiday where the students are want to share the new with friends and did so regardless” while more effective managers allowed the first 5 minutes of the day to let kids get this out of their systems (Anderson, 1979).

Less effective managers would expect the students to ignore a new exhibit (such as a class pet) for a while, delaying an explanation until later”, while more effective manager, again, allowed the first 5 minutes of the day to let kids get this out of their systems (Anderson, 1979).

Transitions

Less effective managers “called for transitions suddenly, when students were still in the middle of a task and have not been warned about the change while more effective managers provided warning before transitions and used strategies that helped to break on going momentum, as well as to restart it”

(Anderson, 1979). Instructions

Less effective managers gave “complex instructions orally without putting them on the board or helping them remember them. They also tended to present directions for two similar activities simultaneously, resulting in confusion” (Anderson, 1979).

Discussions

With the less effective managers, “discussions were conducted without many students participating. Most frequently relying on volunteers or allowing them to call out so that only the most eager students responded. In contrast, the more effective managers sometimes used patterned turns- insuring that everyone had an equal and predictable opportunity to respond (Anderson 1979).

References

Anderson, L., Evertson, C., Emmer, E. (1979). The Research and Development Center for Teacher

Education: The University of Texas at Austin. Dimensions in Classroom Management Derived

from Recent Research. Retrieved 022512 from http:www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED175860.pdf

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“Rethinking Education Picture”. Retrieved 030412 from ttp://rethinking-education.com/wp

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