TL;DR
- Effective teacher feedback can increase student engagement
- Effective peer feedback can enhance the capacity for monitoring progress
- Effective self-feedback can improve student motivation and independence
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a research-based framework for instructional design that centers on student equity. When implemented successfully, UDL benefits all learners with flexible access to materials, differentiated opportunities to meet learning goals, and supports for student engagement. Where does feedback fit into a UDL classroom?
Effective teacher feedback can increase student engagement
The way we structure and deliver feedback can make a big difference in how it sustains student motivation and effort toward learning. Mastery-oriented feedback, which guides students toward mastery of learning objectives, has the greatest potential. This feedback should be frequent, specific, and informative; it should be delivered in a place in the instructional sequence where students have a clear place to apply the feedback to improve the quality of work or comprehension. It should also help students with metacognition by identifying patterns, suggestive helpful strategies, and pointing to indicators of success.
Effective peer feedback can enhance the capacity for monitoring progress
Structured peer feedback is a powerful tool for supporting self-assessment and metacognition. When we ask students specific questions about the quality of a work sample, we help them learn the expectations of a specific assignment and also how to monitor their own progress toward mastery. Templates for peer feedback, assessment checklists, rubrics, and worked examples all support effective peer feedback in a way that develops student capacity for monitoring their own progress.
Effective self-feedback can improve student motivation and independence
As students improve their capacity for self-assessment, their motivation often increases. This increase in motivation happens when a student is able to recognize their growth towards greater independence. We can support students in recognizing this growth through self-assessment scaffolds like progress monitoring charts, rubrics, and reflection prompts. Guided activities like feedback journaling and progress conferences can help students develop a routine for self-reflection.
By incorporating these three types of assessment, teacher, peer, and self, we can support student motivation, engagement, and independence. We invite you to see how these elements might fit into the next unit you plan.
Resource:
CAST (2018). Universal Design for Learning Guidelines version 2.2. Retrieved from http://udlguidelines.cast.org