Assistant Principal - Learning

 

Talking to your child about their learning

Tonight, when your child comes home, don’t ask them “How was school?” especially if you know that the answer is most likely going to be a predictable grunt, or shoulder roll, an eye roll, or all three… try asking them this question: “What feedback did you receive today?” If they reply ‘none’, then probe a little further: “What conversations about your work/contributions/answers did you have with your teacher(s) or classmate(s) today?”

Much of the feedback we provide your child happens in the moment. It could be affirming, through paraphrasing and/or building of a student’s answer they have contributed to the class discussion, it might be the passing comment that helps them to up-level their work, perhaps it’s the demonstration of a particular skill. What this very small set of examples, which are really a small representation of myriad examples, is that the feedback provided isn’t about saying “Good Work” or “Great Job” nor is it about saying “That’s not right” or “You have failed to…” What the ‘in the moment’ feedback provides students, are practical, direct and useful insights that outline how to move their learning forward in order to achieve the intended learning goal. The power of this kind of feedback is that it avoids marks, grades, or comments that judge the level of achievement. Which results in, when translated into the cognitive learning space, the student not being blinded by the mark but rather remaining open to continual improvement. This is the kind of feedback we want your child to not only be receiving in every class, but to know that they are receiving it.

The discussions you have with your child around their learning at the end of the day are just as vital as those around the feedback they have received. Lyn Sharratt (achievement expert) suggests 6 critical questions that help students express their metacognition (that is, the thinking about thinking) around their learning:

What are you learning?

Why are you learning this?

How are you going?

How do you know?

How can you improve?

Where do you go for help?

If students have a clear understanding of the purpose of what and how they are learning, they can intrinsically push themselves to move the learning goal posts. Help to deepen your child’s recognition of the value of their learning experiences by having rich conversations with you that promote opportunities for your child to ‘speak up’ - to have a voice about their learning. 

Armed with this knowledge, you can truly help your child to consider the learning beyond the content. So tonight, tomorrow night, and every school night after, ask your child “What feedback did you receive today?”, or try the 6 Critical Questions...They might not have an answer for you tonight, but in a week, a term, a semester, a year… see how their understanding of learning changes!

Eli Simpson

Assistant Principal (Learning)