TEACHER FEEDBACK

 “You have to love what they do; try to understand what they do; and not be promiscuous with what they do.” – Quincy Jones

 

Teacher – student writing conferences play an extremely important role in the writing classroom; however, I have not found a template that insures a successful one.  Having attended numerous workshops and read many texts on the subject, however, I do believe certain criteria exist.  

 

My ultimate goal in my writing classes was to help students toward becoming independent writers.  In my advanced writing classes I reminded my students that I was only one reader – that I might be able to offer some helpful insights, but that they needed to realize that as they continued on, they would encounter many other readers.  I encouraged them to seek out other readers (parents, other students, other teachers) of their work. 

 

Here are some suggestions I gained from Ralph Fletcher (one of my go-to mentors):

 

1.    Think of yourself as a reader and respond as such.  

2.    Make the conference a conversation – involve the student.  (How’s it going? What do you need help with?)

3.    Find things to praise.  (I had a graduate assistant who shared that he discovered pointing out good aspects worked more effectively than identifying the weaknesses.)

4.    Limit the time – maybe focus on just one aspect.

5.    Share places in the writing where you encountered problems or were confused.

 

Remember to teach the writer, not the writing!  In a previous post I shared that using a class novel as a mentor text is a great resource. In addition to classmates’ writing and published authors’ writing, become comfortable sharing your own writing (through all the various stages of creation).  If possible participate in a writing group with other teachers so that you can share your experiences with your students. A standard component of our Minnesota Writing Project summer institutes was participating in writing group. I found it was invaluable in my own classroom to share examples of feedback (both written and oral) that I had received and to show the revisions I made in my writing.  

 

A final thought: “Many ideas grow better when they are transplanted into another mind than the one where they sprang up.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes