How
to Improve Student Writing
Writing teachers don’t want to
waste their time. They have a stack of papers to correct and they want
to give the kind of feedback that will improve student writing. Recent
research suggests that the best feedback is comprehensive, and recent
advances in technology make it easier for teachers to follow this
advice.
Most
Effective Feedback
Bitchener and Knoch (2008) conducted a study
in which students received different amounts of feedback on their
writing. Their research found that student writing improved the most
when they received a combination of
- direct feedback on specific problems in
their writing, - meta-feedback on how to improve the
organization of their essays, and - oral feedback on their progress. …
These gains were immediate, and were retained over time.
The key appears to be the combination. Students need direct feedback on
each mistake and suggestions for fixing the mistakes. They also need
more global feedback on how best to structure and essay.
Making it Easier
Very few instructors have time to offer all 3 types of feedback to
their students. Pearson Longman has partnered with ETS to make
this a reality for more teachers. Criterion Publisher’s Version
is now available with the Longman Academic Writing Series.
Criterion provides direct corrective feedback to students on their
grammar, mechanics, and style. This allows writing instructors to focus
on the kinds of feedback that software cannot provide — higher
level organization, developing a thesis, etc.
With Criterion, more instructors can help improve their students
writing by giving them all three types of feedback recommended by
Bithener and Knoch. For more information, watch this short video about
Criterion and see it in action.
Reference
Bitchener, J. & Knoch, U. (2008) The value of written corrective feedback for migrant and international students. Language Teaching Research. 12 (3): 409-431.
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