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Handling feedback in online education What goes around, comes around. That’s according to an old saying. To some extent, the same holds good in the case of education and perhaps career too. At various stages of life, we receive various kinds of feedback. For example, our parents tell us how we behaved in the presence of guests, teachers at school tell us how we did in our exams, employers or superiors give us feedback on our performance at work. The feedback can be formal or informal, solicited or unsolicited and most importantly, positive or negative. The Need for Feedback in Education It has been demonstrated that ‘feedback’ plays an important role in instruction (Mory, 2004; Topping, 1998) Many a learning theorist postulate that it is essential to students' learning (Driscoll, 2000).Mory observes that‘instructional feedback provides students with information that either confirms what they already know or changes their existing knowledge and beliefs’. In “Formative assessment and self-regulated learning: A model and seven principles of good feedback practice", authors Nicol and Macfarlane-Dick (2006) suggest that feedback serves as a form of formative assessment, designed to improve and accelerate learning.They went on to cite the following seven principles of good feedback practice: 1. clarifies what good performance is (goals, criteria, standards) 2. facilitates the development of self-assessment and reflection 3. delivers high quality information to students about their learning 4. encourages teacher and peer dialogue around learning 5. encourages positive motivational beliefs and self esteem 6. provides opportunities to close the gap between current and desired performance 7. provides information to teachers that can help shape teaching (p. 3). (The above mentioned seven principles have been quoted verbatimfrom Nicol and Dick’s document on feedback practice) Some education analysts and subject matter experts feel that the need for feedback is stronger in an online environment vis-à-vis its traditional counterpart. It has been noted that due to lack of appropriate feedback, e-learners are most likely to disconnect from the study material or environment than those attending traditional classes. These assertions are enough to realize the significance of appropriate and timely feedback in online learning. While giving effective feedback isn’t an easy job, receiving or handling feedback is equally tough. Let’s learn about some of the dos and don’ts of handling feedback in online learning. Dos: In case of positive feedback: • Accept it with a pinch of salt. Allow yourself some satisfaction and sense of accomplishment. • Acknowledge the positive feedback from your instructor and respect it. • Interact with him/her to understand how you could replicate the success in other areas. • Remember what your positives or strengths are and use them to your benefit • Be confident. • Share the success with your family, friends and peers if you consider it a big achievement. In case of negative feedback: • Acknowledge the feedback and accept it with respect if you feel it is right. • If you feel the feedback isn’t fair, interact with your instructor to clarify. • In case of queries, think through them well before posing them to your teacher. • Identify your areas of improvement • Seek your teacher’s advice in bettering yourself. Don’ts: In case of positive feedback: • Don’t dwell too much on it, enjoy the feeling of being praised but learn to move on. • Bear in mind your plus points but don’t let them overshadow your other traits. • Don’t overestimate your caliber with some instances of success. Remember, success isn’t a destination, it’s an ongoing journey. In case of negative feedback: • Avoid getting defensive when receiving the feedback. • If the feedback spoils your mood, set it aside for a day (if your course schedule permits) and then go back to it with a fresh mind. • Do not react compulsively or give harsh reply to your instructor. For more details please visit: http://www.gyanfinder.com/blogs/1/682/handling-feedback-in-online-educ Gyan Web Solutions is a software product-based company. It was founded in December 2010, in Hyderabad, India by two enthusiastic and determined men with years of dynamic experience in the fields of electronic and computer engineering.
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online education, online learning, online teaching, online training,
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