ESL Teaching: The Art of Giving Feedback

Summary

The video presents feedback as an essential part of effective language teaching. Without it, students may not know whether they are improving, lose motivation, or feel stuck—especially around the intermediate level. Teachers should support students who have taken on the challenge of learning a language by offering guidance, encouragement, and clear information about their progress.

Main Types of Feedback

• Praise: Recognize what students are doing well and help create a positive, motivating classroom atmosphere. Praise should be specific and genuine, not excessive or a substitute for useful guidance.
• Correction: Address errors constructively and honestly, with attention to the lesson’s target language. Avoid correcting every small mistake without a plan, but do not leave students without correction.
• Advice and encouragement: Give students practical ways to continue learning beyond class, such as reading in English, joining a study group, or applying useful learning tips.
• Evaluation and assessment: Help students understand how their progress is measured. The presenter advises looking beyond test scores and helping students notice their own improvement.

Recommended Approach

• Make feedback regular and planned, rather than limiting it to a routine summary or correction session at the end of class.
• Give feedback throughout the lesson, including after activities. This can include praise, listening and responding to students’ answers, or offering pronunciation tips.
• Keep feedback balanced and structured by identifying both what students do well and where they need help.
• Make feedback positive and motivating, while remaining honest about areas for improvement.
• Ensure that advice and evaluation support students’ progress rather than simply moving them to the next level or treating learning as pass or fail.
• Avoid common pitfalls such as overpraising, underpraising, overcorrecting, giving no correction, offering unhelpful advice, and providing no evaluation.

The examples contrast helpful, specific feedback with vague or exaggerated praise, abrupt criticism, and feedback that offers little practical direction. The overall lesson is that feedback is a core part of teaching and learning, not an optional add-on.

Speakers and Sources Featured

• Presenter/narrator: An unidentified instructor delivering the teacher-training material.
• Teacher and Jason: Voices in short classroom role-play examples; their identities are not otherwise established.
• Classroom participants: Brief student responses in a demonstration activity; they are not individually identified.
• Driving-related clip: A brief illustrative scene in which no speaker is identified.