How to Give Great Feedback [even at scale]
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How to Give Great Feedback [even at scale]
A sneak-peak into how I write & deliver feedback to drive motivation & mastery on the Course Design Accelerator
Each week on the Course Design Accelerator, I give my learners audio feedback on the week gone by - we call it Feedback Friday.
Why do I do this, what do I include to optimise the feedback for mastery & motivation, and how would I achieve the same quality of feedback at scale?
Use Feedback to Drive Mastery
Learners learn better when key learnings are cohered and confirmed by the instructor.
On the accelerator, I do this in three ways:
Giving in-the-moment feedback in live classes.
Giving end of week feedback via Feedback Friday.
Identifying and celebrating examples of great in the course community space.
Ninja Tip: Research shows that to optimise your feedback for mastery, you should provide an additional activity prompt to enable learners to apply what they learned in the feedback immediately - a proven strategy to increase achievement (see a real example, below).
Use Feedback to Drive Motivation
Learners are more likely to persist & complete a course if they receive feedback that is regular, structured & delivered rapidly after they complete a task.
On the accelerator, I do this by providing feedback with the same structure every week:
Key Take Aways: coheres and confirms key learnings and common errors.
Q&A: shares and answers big questions that have come up this week.
Meta Moments: reflections on how I designed the week gone by (aka sharing real-world expertise on the subject).
Shout Outs: a celebration of achievement and effort.
Swat Up: opportunities to apply what we have learned over the weekend.
Ninja Tip: Research shows that to optimise your feedback for motivation, you should explicitly acknowledge learner effort, as well as achievement (see a real example, below).
Verbal Feedback Wins
Research shows that learners learn better and are more motivated when they receive feedback that is verbal (i.e. video or audio), rather than text-based.
On the accelerator, I do this by:
Responding in the community using short videos & voice notes as well as text.
Delivering Feedback Friday as a short piece of audio.
See a real example of this in action, below.
Authenticity Wins
Authenticity matters more than production values.
On the accelerator, I use my laptop’s basic audio recorder and don’t worry too much if I make small errors - these only add to my authenticity and connection with my cohort.
Side Note: Delivering Great Feedback at Scale
Don’t have the time to record responsive feedback each week? Pre-record your verbal feedback before your course launches!
While you can’t cover everything with pre-recorded feedback, you will know enough in advance of your course to pre-record meaningful verbal feedback on key learning points & common errors. Research shows that this is a far more effective way to deliver feedback than generic scores or text-based feedback delivered via automated quizzes.
Example: Feedback Friday on the Course Design Accelerator
Here’s an example of verbal feedback in action, taken from last week.
As you listen, think about how you could use verbal feedback to optimise for learner motivation & mastery.
Happy Designing 👋
One more thing…. You can apply for a place on the Course Design Accelerator here. It’s a four week, hands-on design sprint where we work together to design or redesign a course of your choice using the science of learning.
You may also want to subscribe to the Learning Science Digest, a monthly summary of peer reviewed research on learning science, translated into course design practices - check it out!