Effective instructor feedback strategies for English language learners

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Characteristics of Effective Instructor Feedback for ELLs
The feedback I provided would best be described as editorial, directive and facilitative. I use cross-outs, make corrections, and label grammatical errors. However, I also give directive feedback: for example, I might write something like, “A participle must modify something in the sentence—yours is dangling.” I am also facilitative. I bring up a topic related to the content of the writing and ask the student a question to get him to think more deeply about the subject (Hughes, n.d.). My ratio is equally divided among the three types, and this is what I always strive to achieve. I think it is a good balance between showing corrections, giving advice, and getting the student to think, which is what Ferris and Hedgcock (2014) suggest is reasonable.
My opinion of using a method such as a the Strengths and Weaknesses Analysis in Principles and Practices (Andrade & Evans, 2013) and its accompanying Monitoring Performance Form is that it is a very good method of helping students to become conscious of their development. I would modify these forms to match a writing assignment given to my grade level and proficiency level of students: for example, a typical writing task might be to do a journal entry of your thoughts for the day. I would modify analysis and use the form to examine whether the student stuck to the main idea of the task and to see if the student is applying himself to the task. This should be evident by the development of a theme. If a theme is not developed, I assume that the student has not focused on the task. Development should show transition of thought and an expansion of an idea to include alternative points or even non-sequitors. The form should be adjusted to include an assessment of the student’s development of the theme throughout the entirety of the composition.
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