Feedback and error correction

Feedback is an essential part of the writing process. Feedback generally consists of feedback on form and feedback on content. Some common types of feedback are:

Written feedback – Teachers give students written comments and make specific suggestions to help students improve their writing.

Conferencing with students – Teachers meet students, discuss their writing, and give feedback.

Peer feedback – Students review each other’s writing. With peer feedback sessions, it is helpful to give students criteria from which to base their feedback. Students should be constructive rather than critical. Peer feedback is great for students because it allows them to practice their own expertise, to gain confidence and independence in error correction and identifying issues in written texts, and to gain confidence in problem solving issues in written texts. It can also help to remove reliance on the teacher and promote independent learning.

Remember, feedback can also be positive! It is good to encourage students when they do a great job.

Students tend to want every error corrected by their teacher in academic writing. However, correcting every error can demotivate students and is very time consuming for teachers. It is a good idea for teachers to use error correction codes and to focus on certain areas of error rather than identifying every error. Also, students should be encouraged to use grammar checkers and spell checkers in word processing software so they can remove common errors before submitting their paper to their teacher. These kinds of tools can help students to become more independent in their writing.