Education is the one thing that remains constant during our lives. The family system is the
first system we experience, while the education system usually follows. The educators mimic
the family system in many ways. Educators act as surrogate parents to those who have
experienced family problems and other issues. I agree that it is extremely frustrating when a
professor does not give prompt feedback or feedback is delayed.
The courses that give students feedback about what they know or don't know. Allow students
to think outside the book. However, some students do not enjoy being criticized for their
work. Criticism can challenge students to dig deeper into understanding a topic (Berstein et
al., 2020).
Effective feedback improves student accomplishment and boosts self-regulation during the
learning process. Researchers suggest that students respond differently to the teacher's
expectations. For example, students' and teachers' perceptions concerning teacher feedback
quantity and quality frequently vary substantially (Yang et al., 2021).
Feedback is also essential during our walk with God. We wait and listen to his voice and
what he is directing us to do. "And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into
the patient waiting for Christ." (King James Version, 2022, 2 Thessalonians 3:5). I agree with
the aspect of your critique that feedback is an essential component of learning and influences
student motivation. However, I believe Bernstein et al. (2020) provided an appropriate level
of direction on the nature of content, given the limited space in which the topic was
discussed. They describe ensuring students receive feedback on what they know and do not
know, as well is what they are doing incorrectly as well as correctly. In my view, this is a
simple, yet clear description of quality feedback in an educational setting. My only
suggestion would be to add recommendations on how the student can improve, providing
them with a level of guidance to move forward. I believe this aligns more with Pan & Shao’s
(2020) recommendation for developmental feedback.
f f f f f f f Prompt feedback is necessary for students to make progress, but I would assert the
quality/content of the feedback matters more. I am sure we could all tell stories of teachers
who gave feedback in a timely manner but lacking clarity, direction, and kindness. Brene’
Brown, a leading author and researcher in the arena of courage and vulnerability, coins the
term “clear is kind, unclear is unkind” (Brown, 2018, p. 47). Feedback delivered with clarity
and leading to understanding, along with compassionate delivery, shows respect for the
recipient. Jesus demonstrated this well for us in His absolute clarity yet kindness in the way
He spoke and taught. We would do well to follow His model of our ultimate Teacher!. Your
reflection here brings up some very key elements to effective teaching that I much appreciate.
I enjoyed reading your recounts of instances where the concept of care was provided and its
immense impact. f I agree with you about the profound results this can have on a student. f
Teaching is not easy and requires a lot of multi-tasking ability to not only be attuned to the
individual learning needs and aptitudes of each student but then what to do with those
assessments. f The fact that your instructor recognized you were capable of more and then
took the time to challenge you further is commendable. His or her effort not only instilled
greater confidence in you but also apparently enriched the learning experience of others as
well. f I believe that by God’s grace, many times we are placed in situations to spur one
another on. f “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another” (New International
Version, 2009, Proverbs 27:17). Many of us have inspiring stories of teachers who saw
potential in us, believed in us, and took the time to create opportunities to further sharpen our
skills for good. f Your recount here is one of those heart-warming accounts. f I too find much
inspiration in Chickering and Gamson’s (1987) sixth principle of high expectations. f In my
mind, expecting much but reciprocating by taking the time to provide the necessary support
(as the instructor) is a reciprocal commitment. f It is a team effort. Where those who invest
their time to teach, present a greater challenge, support the challenge, believe and invest the
time and care for individual to progress….to me that is a type of love (service) and that is
where miracles can happen all for the glory of God. Your poor experience reminds me of
many classes I have taken myself. Classes where the teacher seems to assign more busy work
than teaching material. I agree that is it the learning aspect of being in school that helps keep
students engaged. I would say that your experience is related to the principle: Emphasize
Time on Task. f This principle focuses on the teachers' educating students on material rather
than trivia. (Bernstein, 2020) I believe this is also true of assignments that seem to be testing
your knowledge. I challenge you to look at the positive of this experience, you have found
Liberty University in spite of this unideal experience.
Looking at your positive experience, I would say that you hit the nail on the head. Dr. M
displayed the principle of Student Cooperation perfectly. She helped you and another student
with conflict resolution techniques and encouraged you all to work better together. That is an
awesome description of a good teacher. She displayed care and helped you grow in your
educational career and as a person. I hope that you take what you have learned from both of
these experiences and use it to help you fulfill what God has called you for. Use what you
have learned to improve your own professional development. Studies show that teachers who
spend more time improving their professional development have greater impact on students
Your story really highlights the opportunity and responsibility educators have. There is an
adage that comes to mind which states, "no one cares how much you know until they know
how much you care." Outside of the seven principles from our text which we were to focus
on for this post is the Teacher Behaviors Checklist (TBC). Bernstein, Frantz, and Chew
(2020) provide a table highlighting 28 attributes, but specifically identify eight as "the most
important." It is no surprise that "Encourages and Cares for Students" makes that elite list.
Such was the case for my favorite teacher as it was for the other student I replied to. I suspect
empathy and care are more soft skills that must be developed as opposed to hard skills that
can be explicitly taught. I would argue, given the weight of evidence for the importance of
caring, that teachers who do not demonstrate care for students ought to consider different
career options. My youngest son went through a similar experience with his kindergarten
teacher. I know that for me, my kindergarten teacher was a very special person in my life
(and still is!) and it was similar for my oldest son. We moved to Arizona 4 years ago, after
my ex-husband's mental health took a steep decline and he became heavily addicted to drugs.
Things had been very unsafe and chaotic for us, and my boys and I moved here to start over.
My youngest also has ADHD and they had both been through incredible trauma and change.
I had them both in therapy and was doing everything I could to help them heal. My youngest
was struggling and having emotional outbursts. I met with the teacher and school often trying
to help. However, she was triggering him in a lot of ways and would not acknowledge it.
Instead of responding in a calm manner, she would escalate, which would make the situation
much worse. The school's response was similar to hers, and so I pulled him and put him in a
different school. Fortunately, the new school and kindergarten teacher were everything he
needed. They were so sweet and understanding, yet firm with their expectations. However
there guidance remained constant, so he was able to learn right from wrong and work on
handling his emotions. They were flexible and kind, and I will never forget it. Like you
stated, a little bit of empathy can go an incredibly long way.
References:
Bernstein, D. A., Frantz, S., & Chew, S. (2020). Teaching psychology: A step-by-step guide.
(3rd ed.) Routledge.
King James Bible. (2022). King James Bible Online. https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/
Yang, L., Chiu, M. M., & Yan, Z. (2021). The power of teacher feedback in affecting student
learning and achievement: insights from students’ perspective. Educational Psychology,
41(7), 821-824. https://doi.org/10.1080/01443410.2021.1964855
