If you think about it, feedback defines so many of our interactions. Not just with students but also with friends, family and our team members.
We are either receiving feedback or in a position to share it. There are not too many occasions when we don’t experience feedback in some form. I bet at some point today; you experience feedback.
It is a fundamental component of human interaction and a vital communication dynamic. Feedback is a glue that binds and potentially strengthens relationships. We might also say feedback is an idea propellant that drives us to succeed.
In this opening issue of the month, we explore the essential components of critique. We turn our attention to the small details in any feedback dynamic.
Let’s start with how to put your socks on
The story of John Wooden is a powerful reminder about focusing on the basics.
In the first UCLA training session, Coach Wooden would teach his university basketball team how to put on their socks and shoes.
It didn’t matter if the player was a freshman or a senior. Everyone needed to know how to do this essential task correctly. The reaction from players was, “Why are you wasting our time? We know how to put on socks and shoes.”
But as the players soon realised, this wasn’t just about putting on socks and shoes. It was about the importance of paying attention to the small details.
If there are wrinkles in your socks or your shoes aren’t tied properly, you will develop blisters. With blisters, you’ll miss practice. If you miss practice, you don’t play. And if you don’t play, we cannot win. If you want to win championships, you must take care of the smallest of details.
~ John Wooden
The underlying message was that the team needed to focus on the basics and not get distracted by more complicated matters. The little things that might seem unimportant can make a big difference in the outcome.
We can take a similar approach when we think about improving feedback and building a culture of critique.
My challenge is to consider the small details of feedback that make the most significant difference.
The 7 Basic Ingredients of Feedback
What is always present when feedback occurs? I might be wrong but here are the assumptions we can work with about the experience of feedback.
The Action
> The catalyst for critique is an action.
Every feedback experience begins with an action that creates an impact. This can be both intended or unintended action and spans the range of human behaviour. Any of our activities can elicit a feedback response.
In our classrooms, we manage a complex experience of student communication, collaboration and learning. All of these actions instigate feedback responses; it is not just the formal teacher-to-student feedback.
The Signal
> Feedback is a response to a stimulus or action.
The purpose of feedback is to provide information about the results of the action so that the following steps can be adjusted accordingly. In other words, feedback helps us understand our behaviour’s impact and how it affects others. It is a way of monitoring and regulating our behaviour.
Information becomes feedback if, and only if, I am trying to cause something and the information tells me whether I am on track or need to change course.
~ Grant Wiggins
The Source
> The source of a feedback response can be varied.
Although we might immediately think feedback is an exchange of information between people, we also participate in feedback loops when working independently. This might be our inner voice or direct comparisons we make to a personal portfolio.
We might be using technology or paper maps, worked examples or templates, and use these to decide if we are on track.
The Receptor
> The person or organisation who is the recipient of a feedback response.
Every feedback experience needs a receiver of the feedback response. We need at least one person in this dynamic, even if they are the source and receiver of feedback. We always need a receiver. That is not to say the receiver is ready, open or willing to hear the feedback!
The Translation
> The meaning and sense that the receptor attaches to the signal.
Once someone has received the signal, they will attempt to make sense of it. This is the translation. Biases, experiences, and beliefs often impact this sense and meaning-making process.
As a result, two people can receive the same signal but have very different translations. This is the point where well-intentioned feedback can go wrong.
The Next Action
> A new action based on the feedback information.
When we say we want to close the feedback loop, we refer to this type of action. One of the final components of any feedback experience is the next action. What kind of response, choice or action the feedback signal elicits in the receiver?
We might change a design, ignore a suggestion or scrap an idea. Doing nothing with the feedback is also a next action.
The Story
> A reflection on the experience of feedback.
A component that is always present but at different levels of fidelity is the story of the experience. This is about how the receiver of feedback interprets the overall experience and the broader meaning that can be generated.
For example, we might question our capabilities after a challenging exchange or supportive feedback discussions may buoy us. This reflection is stronger in some than others and is another source of personal growth.
Let’s look at an example.
Jenny teaches Grade 4 and her class is in the upper junior block at St Catherine's. She shares a small workspace with the other upper junior teachers. Jenny is our feedback receiver [R].
The action [A] she takes is to leave her yoghurt dip in the fridge door over the half-term break.The signal [Si] is the note her colleague Sarah, the source [So] leaves for her the next morning, "Please keep science experiments in your classroom".
Jenny laughed and enjoyed the banter [T for Translation] her next action [NA] was to simply bin the mouldy dip and apologise to the team in the next opportunity.
Jenny often gets banter at the end of term about leaving items in the fridge, although she hasn't refrigerated any science experiments since. Jenny quietly smiles to herself, when she reflects [S for Story] on the way her colleagues responded and laughed about it all.⏭ 🎯 Your Next Steps
Commit to action and turn words into works
- Look for feedback loops and reflect on the 7 components.
- Notice which of the details make the biggest difference to effective critique.
- Consider what might be missing and how I might be wrong.
🗣💬 Your Talking Points
Lead a team dialogue with these provocations
- Every feedback experience has the following basic components: an action, a source, a signal, receiver, translation, next action and a story.
- How do our feedback and performance processes utilise these basic building blocks?
- Do we share an understanding of the basics of the feedback dynamic?