Promoting Prospective Teacher Competencies for Designing, Implementing, Evaluating, and Adapting Interactive Formative Feedback Strategies

Abstract

Formative assessment and feedback strategies play a core role in effective learning and instruction. Thus, teachers should be able to effectively apply the theoretical and empirical insights on formative assessment and feedback strategies in their classrooms. However, designing and implementing formative feedback strategies are complex tasks. Based on the Interactive Tutoring Feedback Model we developed a seminar concept combining case-based reflections of empirically based principles for the design of formative feedback strategies; planning and designing formative feedback strategies for a typical oral or written student assignment; and implementing, evaluating, and iteratively adapting this feedback strategy using on-campus micro-teaching sessions. The benefits and constraints of this seminar concept were explored in an evaluation study with teacher students ( N = 87). Students participating in the treatment seminars had higher gains in knowledge and competencies compared to students of control groups that had either a short theoretical input or no input on feedback. Furthermore, they appreciated the mix of instructional and micro-teaching components, and rated the transferability of the knowledge and competencies they had acquired as high.