The feedback pendulum

The research evidence shows us that effective feedback is one of the most powerful tools that a teacher can have in their ‘toolbox’. But it also offers some cautionary notes... In more than a third of well-designed studies, feedback actively made students’ performance worse. Not all feedback is good feedback! Facial expressions, verbal or written comments, even silence can constitute some form of feedback. It is so integral to communication that it’s happening all the time. Feedback, in its many forms, is a key part of this complex act of teaching and it is worth investing time to reflect on. In this podcast episode we talk to teacher, senior leader and author, Michael Chiles, about the key concepts in his book, The Feedback Pendulum. We discuss the purpose and power of feedback interactions both in the classroom, with parents and with colleagues.  We discuss: The issues and opportunities with feedback Investing time to prime feedback Whole-class feedback The importance of meaningful teacher feedback Feedback to parents for a collaborative approach to learning For more on feedback, you can access our free eBook, A short guide to delivering effective feedback, from our resource library and you can find out more about Michael’s book here. All of our previous podcast episodes can be found in our podcast archive or by searching ‘The Evidence Based Education Podcast’ in your podcast app.