I was reading a blog on the Chartered College of Teaching and one piece of action research really stuck out. It was a case study of an English department, in which the school the research was conducted was quite close in proximity to where I live. The article focused on how the department developed and kickstarted a new initiative in relation to all things feedback. They had based their new ‘feedback model’ on Hattie & Timperley’s model of feedback (2007) and I was interested in trying this in my own educational context of A-Level Psychology. Please see below the project that was carried out this term!
What is it?
Effective feedback transforms students from passive receivers into active participants in their learning. This model emphasises a structured approach that highlights areas of success and improvement, provides model answers, and offers specific tasks for development. Inspired by Hattie and Timperley’s (2007) feedback framework, the process focuses on three core elements:
Feed Up, where students understand what success looks like.
Feedback, which shows students how they are performing relative to the criteria.
Feed Forward, guiding them on the next steps to improve.
What does the research say?
Research highlights that feedback is most effective when it fosters independence and self-efficacy. Hattie and Timperley (2007) emphasise that good feedback helps students clarify their goals, measure progress, and take actionable steps. Similarly, Wiliam (2016) notes that feedback’s value lies in how students use it, not its complexity. Simplified, actionable feedback can reduce reliance on teachers while enhancing autonomy. Fletcher-Wood (2018) supports this, showing that less directive feedback often leads to better outcomes by encouraging critical thinking and problem-solving.
The feedback model used (apologies for poor quality):
Research in Action
This model was tested in Year 12 Psychology classes on an Application Essay for Social Psychology (26/11/23). Students received an A4 sheet that outlined what went well, highlighted target areas for improvement, provided a model answer, and set specific next steps. Using this resource, students completed follow-up activities to refine their essay writing skills.
Student Feedback
A questionnaire completed by 37 students, along with interviews with three participants, revealed a range of perspectives. One student appreciated the target sheet for making it clear what needed improvement, while another preferred handwritten feedback for its perceived specificity. A third student highlighted the guidance offered by the target sheet as especially helpful for knowing what tasks to tackle post-assessment.
Feedback from student questionnaire:
Teacher Reflections
Like any new initiative, there were significant positives, but equally some challenges during the process. The main benefit to using this model allow for students to really respond the feedback effectively, and this was supported heavily by the clear targets provided on the right side of the sheet. In addition to this, the initiative confirmed my preconceptions about the use of model answers as a useful tool during feedback. It seemed that the students really appreciated this addition to their feedback, and I certainly think that I will take every opportunity to do provide them this after an assessment.
Despite the initial worry about taking lots of time to create this feedback model, this proved a lot quicker when marking the essays. Now this template is created, it will be easy to adapt for each essay that I give in the future.
Some of the notable challenges were like those of the English department of whom I took inspiration for this project. I felt a real need during the marking process to write specific feedback outside of the initial target/coding system that I had intended to use. It was certainly in the back of my mind as to whether this coding system allowed for the specific feedback that I was able to provide in the past, usually by the method of handwritten comments. It appears from the student comments that this was something they also thought about this feedback method.
On this discussion surrounding specificity of feedback, I hypothesise that perhaps the synergy of effective feedback here could be that the model alongside verbal feedback could be a stronger form than just handwritten feedback alone. However, it then begs the question as to whether handwritten feedback alongside some verbal input from the teacher may be an even better option?
Having said that, would handwritten feedback and verbal input allow for students to act on their feedback as effectively as the model put forward in this project…?
References:
Fletcher-Wood H (2018) Responsive Teaching: Cognitive Science and Formative Assessment in Practice. Abingdon: Routledge.
Hattie J and Timperley H (2007) The power of feedback. Review of Educational Research 77(1): 81–112.
Wiliam D (2016) The secret of effective feedback. Educational Leadership 73(7): 10–15.
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