It’s not teaching that causes learning, after all — as painful as it might be for us educators to realize. Learning is caused by learners attempting to do something and getting feedback on the attempt. So learners need endless feedback more than they need endless teaching.

~ Grant Wiggins

When I was a child and “played school” with my siblings, my favorite part, as a teacher, was “grading” the assignments I had created. In hindsight, I think it was more about “being right” than anything else; it certainly wasn’t helpful feedback on improving. Over the course of my 24+ year teaching career, I have assessed and provided feedback on countless assignments, but it was the lessons I learned 5 years ago at the Science of Teaching and School Leadership Academy at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School in Potomac, Maryland that made the biggest difference in how I provide feedback. There were a couple of important lessons about giving feedback that leads to real improvement which has stuck with me ever since and influenced the way I teach. 

Knowing the end goal of an assignment is a key piece of providing useful feedback. According to Hattie and Timperley,…