...in Classrooms and Life
When I recently did a "Last lesson of Module" survey recently, for my class of primary kids, I realised an important thing: Feedback is Gold.
It was always a logical thing, that yes, of course feedback is useful, that is the point of it, check the definition.
But it is another to realise it, and truly appreciate it with personal understanding.
It is rare to get responses in most classes as the students grow up, as they become ... afraid of voicing out. At least for me, in all that I've seen so far in my short life as yet.
Response is: ((by googling, first result))
an answer, a reaction to something.
For me with kind of shaky confidence ((read, false bravado all the time)) I may logically convince myself that I did fine, but hearing the strong response of how much they enjoyed it was a ... surprising wave of relief that went through. I had not failed so terribly. The coin or shoe i was expecting to drop, for now, will not.
When asked, any suggestion for future? A typical class of say, 16 year olds, may not bother giving truly what they think, or maybe it is because they overthink. Most resort to politically correct answers, or a simple NIL.
I immediately had hands up here and there, and responses were, very frank.
"Could you make it more interesting?"
"Speak more clearly next time!"
"Make it more exciting!"
"Let us do something simpler please."
"I want to play with the updated version!"
Some made me realise with embarrassment "Oh no, i hadn't been speaking nor enunciating clearly enough!" and "....how does one both give advanced and simple?" and "Yikes, I've been too boring..."...
Some really sent an arrow through my paper-thin pride. ((Well, at least there wasn't much to fall from so no great damages there)). But i was grateful.
It is because they responded so frankly that i got to see what THEY thought. We are each individuals, unique, and try as might, we MAY be able to anticipate, infer, predict, cater to, but never definitely, for humans are... with free will and judgement.
The point of feedback is not to make everyone happy - impossible, without extremes - but to understand, and siphon out what we can learn from it. Responses are NOT commands we MUST OBEY, rather, they are little insights people give to their inner thoughts.
We learn that some characters may require such methods, some may prefer a different way, or hey! that's a mistake I will endeavor not to repeat!
Hopefully, not so many will keep losing their willingness to contribute so fast, so early. Or that many more encourage the will to respond.
