Hey Coach,

I often use tools like Flipgrid, Google Classroom, Seesaw, and blogging so my students can give peer feedback through comments on each other’s work. The problem is, their feedback is not very meaningful - the comments lack detail and specificity to support their peer’s learning, and instead are full of exclamation points, emojis, and vague compliments. How can I teach my students to provide meaningful peer feedback in a digital space?

Sincerely,
Frustrated with Peer Feedback

Dear Frustrated with Peer Feedback,

First, let’s take a moment to celebrate what’s going well. It sounds like you recognize the importance of peer feedback in the classroom, and you’re already utilizing tools that enable students to share and discuss their work. Researchers John Hattie and Helen Timperley (2007) explain that when utilized effectively, feedback is one of the most powerful influences on student learning, so you are on the right track! But what does effective feedback look like? According to Hattie and Gan (2011), feedback is most meaningful when:

• It engages the learner at, or just above, the level where the learner is currently functioning

• It guides learners toward being able to successfully complete the learning task

• It addresses three major questions:

  (1) Where am I going?

  (2) How am I going?

  (3) Where to next?

You are not alone in your struggles, because this research also shows that students do not implicitly have the skills needed to provide each other with meaningful feedback in this manner! In other words, our students require direct instruction to learn these skills. Lucky for us, there are many strategies we can use to support students as they learn to provide meaningful peer feedback in a digital space.

It is critical to first establish clear expectations for commenting in your classroom. What do you expect to see in a quality comment? Some tried and true guidelines include TAG feedback (Tell something you like, Ask a question, Give a suggestion), SPARK feedback (Specific, Prescriptive, Actionable, Referenced, Kind), or one of the strategies from our Effective Peer Feedback infographic. You might even consider increasing student ownership by inviting them to become a part of the process, as seen in these detailed commenting guidelines developed by students and their teacher.

Once you have clearly defined what an effective comment looks like, you can summarize these expectations on checklists, anchor charts, or handouts for students to reference when writing comments. For example, on his blog, Tony Vincent shares how he uses a paper form to ensure student-to-student feedback is meaningful. You might also find our list of comment starters to be a helpful resource for students as they begin to write comments independently. This type of support provides necessary structure and guidance to ensure students are able to experience the many benefits that peer feedback has to offer.

It is also important to actively teach and model the commenting skills you would like to see. Give students opportunities to watch you writing comments and using digital tools to provide feedback. Scaffold the experience by taking the time to compose comments together as a class. You can gradually release responsibility by letting students practice feedback skills on paper before unleashing them into a digital space. As students work, you will identify areas in which students need additional support. Here, you can provide explicit instruction through targeted mini lessons. On her blog, Kathleen Morris illustrates how she annotates student comments to identify ideas for mini-lessons and modeling points. Using student writing to determine next steps will ensure that your instruction and support aligns with students’ most pressing needs.

Remember - in addition to explicitly teaching these important skills, students must also be given adequate time to process the feedback they receive from their peers. After receiving peer feedback, students should have an opportunity to discuss the feedback with their teachers and classmates, utilize the feedback to make adjustments to their work, and reflect on how the feedback impacts their learning and future goals. By creating a classroom environment that values the feedback process from start to finish, our students are much more likely to invest time, thought, and energy into providing meaningful feedback.

Best wishes,
Coach