Using feedback to improve monitoring judgment accuracy in kindergarten children

Abstract

Recognizing errors is challenging for children. In the educational context, inaccurate self-monitoring and a lack of error recognition can hinder learning and successful preparation for elementary school. This study aimed to investigate whether kindergartners’ monitoring accuracy can benefit from feedback, by investigating effects of performance feedback (PF) and calibration feedback (CF), combining feedback on performance with feedback on monitoring. Kindergartners (ages five and six, n = 105) were assigned to either a PF, CF, or no-feedback (NF) control group. They completed analogical reasoning tasks, and then monitored performance by indicating (a) whether responses for each task item were correct or incorrect, and (b) by making global self-reward judgments for performance on the entire task. Moreover, working memory (WM) was assessed to investigate individual differences in the ability to process feedback. Children were overconfident; they overlooked most of their errors and gave themselves inappropriately high rewards for performance. Although both PF and CF improved error monitoring, CF had more beneficial effects than PF on monitoring accuracy. In contrast, concerning self-rewarding, PF was most beneficial. The finding that only children with high WM optimally benefitted from CF implies that WM moderates feedback processing. CF may not be equally effective for all kindergartners. Feedback that only addresses performance may be easier to process, and therefore more suitable.