Wednesday, August 05, 2009

The Best Way

What is the best way of giving some constructive feedback to your students? You know, without sounding harsh and pushing some wrong buttons?

I guess for any new or beginning teachers, we all face the same problem. Feedback is essential for every work, be it marks or remarks yet you just don't know what will the response to the feedback be. You just want to be honest for everyone's sake but how to put it in the most intellectual and encouraging way, that's the quest.

I wish I could pat everyone at the back and say "Good Job" but the standard is raised as the time passes by. I want to see imrpovement, from good to better to best. Most of people haven't really reached good yet being at better shouldn't leave you too comfortable.

Okay, so you have tried writing about lands in Europe and homes of sausages... For other essays, try to tell me something I don't already know. Instead of focusing on the narrative or the plot, you can have a little more emphasis on the characters' soul. Not from the surface, but dwell into its inner thoughts. What do people in certain situation, sometimes compromising ones, think of when they do it?

Also, pick a setting that's beyond here and now. The groovy 60s, for example, is one of the best example. Yes, have some readings on music of the time, the cultural practices. Talk about Malaysia of yesteryears, when students were rulers, for example. What difference can be highlighted that rings truth to the mind?

I have always wanted my continuous essay homeworks to be a punchbag of emotions and conflicts. But more often than not, the essay becomes one of telling an event. A recount.

So, no... You haven't lost it. It's tucked neatly under a layer of doubts, so let's find that exclusively-yours magic. That's a challenge and it's for all of us.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

so then,
maybe bleh bagi kami,
baca essay yg bagus2.
mgkin by that way,
kami tahu bgaimana essay
yg baek dtulis.
kan? kan? kan?

Anonymous said...

and and and,
bunuh saja mereka dgan komen setulus hati.
~be cruel to be kind~

Ana Shirin said...

mungkin.. saya sedang kumpul essay yang bagus dari beberapa SBP. kadang2 apa yang bagus pun, saya rasa masih kurang kualiti..

haruskah saya outsource beyond SPM level? mungkin for some, yes

mYeQa said...

i think u did. (answering ur q in the comment box)

but dat's a good tg to do. Really.

N plez. you two... chill out~

Unknown said...

No KOMEN.

Ana Shirin said...

eqa: yeah, we are chilling..

e-jien: shut up, you! hahaha

Jarod Yong said...

Not all students are mini Enid Blytons or Shakespears.

If they produce recounts, start from there lo...
See if any of the students bite the bait & unlock a world of amazing fantasies.

Anonymous said...

outsource saja beyond spm.
iar mereka tahu,
bgaimana essay yg baek dtulis,
kerana sbp x cukop baek,
kan kan kan?

(x pun come up with ur own essay,
and show what you got!)

bwahahaha~

mohad said...

bagus blog ni penuh dengan knowlege..