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Random Thoughts of a Student Teacher (RTOAST)

Ch. 1 Specific Positive Feedback

By S. D. KelleyPublished 6 years ago 3 min read
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Week 1: (Week of March 14, 2018)

Side-note: Hello there, I am Ms. Kelley. I am a senior student at Lander University studying Special Education. Each week or so, I don’t know, I will be discussing a topic in education. I will NOT be disclosing any confidential information that I see in the classroom. That would be bad, mmkay? These journals are for education topics only. I am also going to be very informal in these topics. I’ll try to keep the teacher talk to a minimum. Let’s get started!

This week in "Random Thoughts of a Student Teacher," I am working on my specific positive feedback. What is specific positive feedback? Well, for all the people that are not in the education field, it just means giving students praise on what specifically that they are doing well. For example, saying “good job, kiddo” does not help the student understand what they just did well. You, as the teacher, might as well have said, “Great job on that thing you did. I’m not going to bother telling you what that thing was though.” Without specific positive feedback, the student is left confused and left wondering what they did or didn’t do well.

What does specific positive feedback look like then, teach'? Giving specific positive feedback looks like a teacher saying, “Very insightful response to the question I just asked. Everyone, Susie Clara Not-Her-Name just made a wonderful connection between shoes and our roads here in South Carolina. Does anyone else want to share their answer?” The teacher let the student know that they made a good connection to what their talking about in class, restated what the student said, and then continued the conversation — giving specific positive feedback.

I feel like I am overkilling it right now in my placement. Apparently, that is what it’s supposed to feel like. I don’t know if any other teachers or student teachers can vouch for that. Right now, I’ve actually made a chart to help me keep up with the feedback. It will be the cover picture whenever you click on the article. Specific positive feedback is hard for me because it feels awkward saying, “I like that you are tracking with your finger in your book. I like the inflection of your voice. I like how you sound when you read.” I constantly catch myself using words that my students have absolutely no idea what they mean. Since when has a kindergartener ever heard, “inflection” tossed around?

As of right now, I’ve noticed significant progress and productivity of students that I have initiated this “Positivity Chart” as I call it. My classroom uses a Direct Instruction Program with specific expectations for the students to do. Every time one of my students follows an expectation or is doing what is expected of them, I will state something positive towards that specific student, and write a check by their name. However, if Ms. Kelley says something mean or negative towards a student, I have to write an “X” by the student’s name and say something positively helpful instead. My students have turned this into a game to see who the best student is during each group time. I would highly recommend this for small groups. This strategy could work for larger groups, but have the chart somewhere you can easily access. This strategy could also be used as a method of teaching charts in the classroom.

To conclude, specific positive feedback can be a game changer in the classroom. By giving students specific positive feedback, you are telling them what exactly they are doing well in the classroom. Some kids are used to hearing that they are doing the wrong thing. When you tell those kids what they are doing right, it means a lot to them. It means a lot more than you might think. Positive feedback is great. However, specific positive feedback is even better.

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About the Creator

S. D. Kelley

Hello! My name is S. D. Kelley, but you can probably see that! I graduated with a Bachelor's in Special Education. I also have a love for writing that I hope to show off here! Glad to meet you!

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