A model for the effective integration of formative feedback into writing and presenting in English home language in the further education and training phase to improve learning

Abstract

Feedback is an element of formative assessment and is widely recognised as critical to the improvement of learning. Current research has found that teachers find it challenging to use feedback effectively in the classroom. Furthermore, research about feedback within the context of assessment for learning and how it is received is lacking, especially in the South African context. Writing lessons include feedback on writing, and the paucity of effective feedback on writing prompted the interest in English Home Language writing lessons. Therefore, the aim was to find, in collaboration with the teachers and the learners, a practical intervention to implement effective feedback as part of assessment for learning in the English Home Language lessons. Four Gauteng high schools with two subunits were purposively selected as part of a case study design and action research methodology. The main research question was: How can feedback be implemented to form an integral part of assessment for learning to improve learning in Writing and Presenting in English Home Language in the Further Education and Training Phase? To answer the question, the sub-research questions were explored in three research cycles. In the first research cycle, the current practice in the writing classrooms at each of the subunits was established. Emerging from the conceptual framework and the first cycle findings, an intervention tool in the form of a Writing Feedback Tool was designed and implemented in the second and third research cycles. Multiple qualitative data sources led to the findings from the implementation cycles which were used to answer the sub-research question: What constitutes a practical intervention for the effective use of feedback as part of assessment for learning in Writing and Presenting? The findings revealed that the Writing Feedback Tool (WFT) succeeded in implementing feedback in the writing classroom to form part of assessment for learning. The study highlighted impediments teachers and learners face in the teaching and learning of writing, but, importantly, that assessment of learning in writing lessons is possible in the South African context. On the basis of the findings, recommendations for policy, teacher practice and teacher education, and further research are provided.