What are some effective strategies for providing feedback on summative assessment tasks?

1 Align feedback with criteria

One of the first steps to ensure effective feedback is to align it with the criteria and standards that were used to evaluate the summative assessment task. This helps students understand what they did well, what they need to improve, and how they can achieve the desired level of quality. Feedback that is aligned with criteria also reduces the risk of bias, inconsistency, or confusion, and promotes transparency and fairness. To align feedback with criteria, you can use rubrics, checklists, exemplars, or models that clearly communicate the expectations and indicators of success.

2 Balance feedback types

Another important aspect of effective feedback is to balance the types of feedback that you provide. There are different ways to classify feedback types, but one common distinction is between descriptive and evaluative feedback. Descriptive feedback focuses on the strengths and weaknesses of the work, and provides specific suggestions for improvement. Evaluative feedback focuses on the grade or score of the work, and compares it to a norm or standard. Both types of feedback have their benefits and drawbacks, but research suggests that descriptive feedback is more helpful for learning and motivation than evaluative feedback. Therefore, you should try to provide more descriptive than evaluative feedback, and avoid using grades or scores as the only form of feedback.

3 Personalize feedback

A third strategy for effective feedback is to personalize it to the needs and preferences of each student. Personalized feedback acknowledges the individual differences among students, such as their prior knowledge, skills, goals, interests, and learning styles. Personalized feedback also builds rapport and trust between you and your students, and shows that you care about their progress and success. To personalize feedback, you can use various methods, such as conferencing, peer feedback, self-assessment, or digital tools. You can also vary the mode, frequency, and tone of your feedback, depending on the situation and the student.

4 Encourage feedback use

A fourth strategy for effective feedback is to encourage students to use the feedback that you provide. Feedback is only useful if it leads to action and improvement, and not if it is ignored or discarded. Therefore, you need to foster a feedback culture in your classroom, where students value, seek, and apply feedback to their learning. To encourage feedback use, you can do several things, such as setting goals and action plans with your students, providing opportunities for revision and resubmission, monitoring and following up on feedback, and celebrating and rewarding feedback achievements.

5 Solicit feedback

A fifth strategy for effective feedback is to solicit feedback from your students. Feedback is not a one-way process, but a two-way dialogue that involves both giving and receiving feedback. By soliciting feedback from your students, you can gain valuable insights into their learning needs, challenges, and perceptions. You can also improve your own teaching practice and assessment design, and model a growth mindset and a willingness to learn. To solicit feedback from your students, you can use various tools and techniques, such as surveys, questionnaires, focus groups, exit tickets, or reflection journals.