Hacking Student Learning Habits: 9 Ways to Foster Resilient Learners and Assess the Process, Not the Outcome by Elizabeth Jorgensen

Grades are terrible feedback. You give students a grade and feedback at the same time, most will only look at the grade. There are many suggestions here on how to give feedback that will also help students assess themselves. They should also look to peers and other outside sources for feedback. Ask open-ended questions (There are samples here.), give them feedback in real-time, and don’t give too much at once. Feedback helps students learn from mistakes and fix them.
Give it in an ongoing manner, not just at the end of a project or unit. Model feedback for the class so they can learn how to be diplomatic and effective as they give peer feedback. They should also learn how to recognize when it’s time to ask for feedback. Narrow your feedback to unit goals since you don’t have time to give feedback on everything. In some cases, you can direct feedback to the entire class. In the end, Elizabeth offers how she gave feedback using examples of student work.

The key here is to help students create strategic habits that will allow them to have a process they can use for making daily progress. They should adjust the process as needed. This means that daily class time must allow for students to work alone or collaborate as you circulate to help as needed. Guide them to self-assess and engage in peer assessment. Make sure they know how to break big tasks into small manageable pieces and consider letting them work backward from the finished concept. This is like reading the answers to a multiple choice test before you read the question.
They should expect mistakes and view them as something that makes them better as they learn from them. A point system will allow them to take risks as they won’t fear bad grades. Share your experiences in dealing with setbacks and unknowns. They should look for spaces that work for them. This may involve students having a say in the classroom arrangement. Anything that makes them feel in control is good. They should understand why they should turn off their phones when they are trying to work. Tell them to step back and check progress often.

Unless you can connect a lesson to the real world and/or students’ lives and interests, their only motivation is to jump through the hoops in front of them to get grades. One way to encourage more effort is to see that the products of students’ efforts are somehow put on display, which can include some kind of performance. Project-based learning can certainly fulfill this goal. The Internet is a great resource here as it allows for virtual tours around the world and for student work to be posted on personal or classroom blogs. You can also use it to Zoom in authors and people from real job sites. Be sure to work with your administrators so they are onboard and can provide support.

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