Feedback during writing: Prioritize and focus!

By Annette O’Boyce

As you sit down to grade a stack of essays, ever wish you had a few rubber stamps with certain handy phrases on them? “Add more evidence”; “that’s not a complete sentence”; or “cite your source”—sound familiar? If the first time you see students’ writing is when they’re submitting their final essays, not only will you find yourself providing robotic feedback like this, it’s unlikely that students will go back and revise, or even remember the feedback the next time they submit writing. This is why providing feedback during the writing process is so valuable. It doesn’t just to help students improve their writing, it helps you stay sane when you review their final products!

Before

Writing is complex, and writing in social studies is even more complex: Not only do we want students to make an argument that’s backed by evidence and written clearly—we want their writing to show they understand the historical content they’re learning. That’s a lot! We can’t expect students to get it all right the first time, or the second time, or frankly, even by the end of the year. So before you assign an essay, pick one element of their writing you’ll be assessing and focus on that—or let your students choose which area they want to focus on.  

An easy way to do this is to use a rubric. You can use the OER Project Writing Rubric or your own—whichever you’ll be using to assess students’ end product. If you’re using the OER Project Writing Rubric, you’ll see that each of the four major categories (Claim and Focus; Analysis and Evidence; Organization; Language and Style) are broken down into subcategories. If it’s early in the year, you can have students focus on just one subcategory. As their writing improves, they can focus on a whole category or multiple categories. You might make the focus student-specific or class-wide. Again, if it’s early in the year, you might want to dictate the focus for the entire class, with some targeted mini-lessons to develop their skills in the areas covered in the rubric. Later in the year, you’ll know your students better and can help them choose areas where they need to focus.

During

With this targeted focus for you and your students, your individual check-ins during the writing process will become more effective. Have students highlight the row or rows of the rubric they’re focusing on, and then highlight where they think they’re addressing it in their writing. Then, when you check in, they’ll be able to quickly point you to their area of focus.

Of course, this doesn’t mean they can’t ask questions and you can’t offer feedback on other elements of their writing, but it gives you both something concrete to home in on during the sometimes daunting tasks of writing (for them) and providing feedback (for you). 

After

When students hand in their final products, ask them to hand in their drafts as well, with the text that addresses their areas of focus highlighted. Although you’ll still read each essay in its entirety, you need to be disciplined about keeping most of your feedback focused on their targets. This avoids the surprise grade at the end for them, and allows you to put away your “add more evidence” rubber stamp. Just make a note that “add more evidence” would be a great target for that student or the entire class the next time around!

This process of reading and talking with students during the writing process encourages students to reflect on their own writing strategies and identify areas where they can improve on their own. This boosts student confidence and helps them become more independent writers—and learners in general. By engaging in conversations with students while they’re writing, you’ll foster trust and the sense that you’re in this together.

About the author: A life-long educator, Annette has been a teacher, curriculum developer, and professional-learning facilitator. She has worked with school districts across the country on developing systems to better support teacher and student learning. Through her work, she has come to appreciate the connection between writing and learning and sees a focus on writing as a key lever for creating more equitable education opportunities. She currently serves as senior national facilitator at the National Center on Education and the Economy.

Cover image: Justice, stamp, © ullstein bild/Getty Images.