I believe that we all know that giving feedback to students can be the bulk of the workload. Is the payoff worth the immense effort and time? In Visible Learning, John Hattie noted that feedback is “one of the most powerful influences on learning and achievement”, so if you’d like to increase student achievement in your classroom, feedback can be the key to making it happen.
Blog commenting is a great and powerful teaching and learning tool which cannot be disregarded. Reflecting on my own experience, I believe that online feedback helped promote good communication and build stronger positive relationships within our Room 5's classroom community. Blogging and commenting provides authentic experiences to purposefully utilize students' reading and writing skills. I always encourage my learners to check out their peers' blogs, give, receive and respond to feedback.
My 2020 lockdown experiences proved that promoting peer blog commenting helps connect students with their friends, teachers and wider communities. Moreover, according to research, through exposure to a multitude of opinions and through awareness of writing for a wider audience, blogs also foster cognitive engagement and critical thinking because learners need to reflect on the possible reactions of others to their postings.
Examples of my Y2-3 learners' comments:
Quite simply- why would you write if no one was going to bother to read your work? These children get wonderful, timely feedback, not only from their teacher, but from their peers. There is no problem getting them to blog as they know someone will read their work and comment within a few minutes.Also they can revise what they've put in response to others' comments.I feel that the emphasis on SMART comments is vital- Room 5 children have never left an unkind comment for a classmate to read, which is a reflection on their teacher and the supportive environment she creates with the children in the classroom.
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