Feedback Givers

The individual needs of each writer completely vary. Some need help with sentence structure, some need help with supporting details, some even need help finding out what the assignment is! The role of feedback also varies greatly between the roles of student and "feedback provider" (there's a better word, please tell me what it is, commenters). There's really 4 main "feedback providers": parents, peers, teachers, and coaches. Because I'm not a parent, I'm not going to focus on how they do things. Frankly, I'm not an expert in it at all. Me saying how parents should treat their kids is like a politician without educational experience controlling educational policy. Glad that never happens!

Peers: Everybody knows what peers are. There the other classmates. Despite a lot of people trying to make peer editing a thing, I don't think it should be a thing. Let's be real, students aren't experts in writing. They might not be able to acknowledge mistakes and offer critique. They just don't have the skills yet! Worse, a peer could tell their student is doing things wrong, but they're actually doing things right. Come grading time, they'll lose points because they were led astray by their peers. Clearly not good. So what are they good for? Positive feedback and emotional encouragement. Students can offer positive praise and keep kids going when their interest is faltering. They can also help more in the brainstorming session, but again, peers might give incorrect information. Peers also have secret knowledges of one another, so they can easily "understand better their emotions and know when to reach out for help when needed" (Herrera, 6).

Teachers: the biggest "feedback providers" we have. They give a lot of information. They set the standards on how the work students create should be graded. They're the experts, so they should be constantly providing feedback of all manners in order to get them to complete the assignments and achieve higher proficiency.  Teachers should be giving more critical feedback based on what the assignment says and expects from them. 

Coaches: These are a mix between teachers and peers. They're experts (hopefully), so they know their stuff. Unlike teachers, they have no authority when it comes to the final grade. So what do they do? They do a bit of everything. They offer critiques, praises, feedback, and emotional encouragement for the entire student. Sometimes this involves helping with life problems or different subjects, as well as the content provided by the teacher. For example, one of my students was complaining about choir being difficult. I shared some resources with them. Am I a trained choir teacher? No! But I can offer encouragement and some resources that I pick up using my adult level searching skills. 

One resource I always offer is Flocabulary. It is a tool that turns concepts and ideas into cool rap songs. They're usually pretty cringe, but every so often there's a banger and the kids are hooked! It's a fun way to mix things up in the classroom, and it includes quizzes, readings, and kids can even make their own raps. It also allows you to see what students struggle on so educators can provide more effective feedback.

In the end, each of these groups are very beneficial in different ways, and because of this, different students will need different amounts of each. Knowing what's best for your students will help them succeed.