My daughter, Samantha, came home from school one day last week and dramatically announced that she had had the worst day ever. When I questioned why, she explained that she did not get the solo part in choir, she had forgotten her lunch, and her writing assignment had been returned with red marks all over it. Samantha went on to say, "I don't understand what I could have done differently. When I was working on my assignment, my teacher said I was doing a good job, and when I finished my audition, the director said the same thing! Why did they lie to me? They got my hopes up for nothing."
This made me reflect on the meaning of the words, good job. What is it we really mean when we say that? What made it good? Is that really the goal we have for our students—to work until something meets our standard?
Teachers often tend to be nurturers and encouragers. Saying "good job" is a habit many of us have gotten into. We are presented with the task of providing feedback on a daily basis. If we want the feedback to be effective, so that it can enhance future performance, it needs to be specific, purposeful, factual, and informative. "Good job" is none of those things. It is "feel-good" statement that is hollow in terms of what it provides to those on the receiving end.
Pay close attention this week and see if you catch yourself saying "good job" when you should be providing more specific feedback. Challenge yourself to use alternative feedback. If you find yourself struggling and unable to break the habit, try following up with specific details such as, "Good job finding a topic and getting started. Can you tell me how you chose this topic?" or "Good job sticking with this problem until you solved it. Can you show me what strategies you tried?"
The article below provides great tips on how to replace "good job" in the feedback you provide.
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