Meaningful feedback should be clear, direct and timely. It should state what was done well (and why) and where there is room to improve (and how), while encouraging self-reflection and motivation in students to achieve their learning goals. Above all, it should be a dialogue between the teacher and pupil, rather than one-way communication.

According to Professor Dylan Wiliam, the most important thing about feedback is what students do with it. By making pupils active participants in the process, it enables them to take control over their own assessment.

Tineke Turck, teacher trainer at Art de Co (Belgium), views feedback as an essential component of formative evaluation, involving three primary methods:

• Feed-up – to establish the purpose (why are we doing this?)
• Feedback – to engage in traditional dialogue (how am I doing?)
• Feed-forward – to focus on the future (how can I achieve this?)

In the case of younger children, development-oriented feedback is prioritised. Instilling the belief that they can grow is the most important element of feedback activities involving this age group.

It is important to understand the impact that mindsets can have on pupil engagement and achievement. A growth mindset gives pupils the conviction that they can expand their knowledge and skills by putting in the effort, trying new approaches, making mistakes and being open to feedback. By normalising learning struggles and emphasising that learning should feel challenging, this can lead to better performance and deeper learning.

Therefore, it can be useful to provide three types of growth-oriented feedback:

• Appreciation – recognising and praising good work,
• Coaching – helping to expand pupils’ knowledge and skills,
• Evaluation – assessing their pupils’ performance.