Feedback Strategies

1. Be a Mirror: Give Readers Feedback That Fosters a Growth Mindset (link): Sometimes it is hard to see our own talents and hard work that it is important to have family, friends, and teachers reflect the truth within us. With this idea, it is about others being a “mirror” to showcase and illuminate who we truly are in order to foster a positive growth mindset. Of the five qualities the author mentioned, I believe the two most important ones are making sure that feedback is transferable and that those who give the feedback take themselves out of the equation. The ability to make feedback transferable allows students to realize that the talents they are using is beneficial and useful in any circumstance or context, and that it is not just tied down to a particular assignment or book. Also, the quality of taking those who give the feedback out of the equation is something I never realized but I believe is extremely important. This generation of children and students are so used to pleasing others that it is almost engraved into our brains. When first person pronounces are not used, I believe it mirrors the student works for what it is. Ultimately, however, it is up to the child or student himself/herself to decide what to do. No matter how much other people pour into them and become their mirror, it is up to the child/student to take that support and put action into it.

2. The Difference Between Praise and Feedback (link): Process praise was this idea by Carol Dweck that states that people should praise the effort put in by the child instead of praising the child itself so that the child can be able to grow as a person. I like this idea for the most part as it allows children to take the praise in the effort itself and use it as fuel to take on future challenges. However, as kids, do they actually realize the difference between praising the effort versus praising the child himself/herself; because if a child does not know the difference then does it matter what kind of praising we give to them? On the other hand we have the concept of praise and personhood which states that parents and educators need to love and approve of them no matter what in exchange for a child's desire to do. However, this can also backfire because as parents and educators we can approve everything a child does, as they need to learn from their mistakes to grow as a person. If a child hits another child, parents and educators should not approve of their actions but instead condemn for doing something bad. I believe at the end of the day, it is a balance between praise and feedback.

Isn't that the truth! Source: Pixabay

Feedback Thoughts

14 Signs Your Perfectionism Has Gotten Out Of Control (link): Wow, this article truly hits close to home. Just by skimming through the article, I could easily relate to 11 of the 14 signs that were mentioned. I have always been eager to please others, especially those older than me, and I have always put others before. Now, I believe this is not to say that pleasing and putting others before me is bad, but it is all about the balance. My dad always tells me and my sister, "Too much of something is bad just as too little of something is not good as well." I sometimes forget to consider my own thoughts and needs in the pursue of pleasing others. I feel like I have been a perfectionist since first grade when I was first exposed to the importance of grades. Therefore, being a perfectionist for the past 14 years has become tiring and unhealthy. College has slowly but surely taught me the reality of it being okay to not be involved in everything and that it is okay to not be a straight A student. It is almost like choosing your battles. Since I have been such a perfectionist for the majority of my life, the tendencies of a perfectionist still hits close to home. However, I think it is about choosing my battles and becoming a perfectionist in some instances and not having to be one in other situations. One of the signs from this article that stood out to me was "you are a big procrastinator." Not until this article did it hit me that procrastination relates to perfectionism. I put things off until the last minute because of the fear of being judged and not being good enough. Also, procrastinating also gives perfectionists an excuse if their writing, project, assignment, timeliness, etc. is not good enough. The phrase "I did not have enough time to do my best so please do not judge me so harshly." can be used by perfectionists and I know I have been guilty of that. Overall, I believe that realization, action, and balance are key to become a controlled perfectionists that can efficiently and gracefully handle feedback.

6 Bad Mental Habits That Sabotage Your Success (link): I liked this article because it is straight to the point. It discusses the bad mental habits and then gives a solution on how to fix it. The habit that struck me the most was the habit of "catastrophizing the future." I am guilty of thinking of the worst possible solutions to scenarios before those scenarios even happen. I admit to exploring the negative answers to the "What if?" questions just to psych myself out. As human beings, this is part of human nature. However, the reaction to psyching ourselves is up to us. We can either move forward or go backwards. Overall, this article pinpoints the small things that affect our success and that it is up to how we train our minds so that it becomes an ally and not an enemy.

So. Much. Feedback! Flickr