Quality feedback in mathematics

Abstract

This thesis examines the extent to which quality feedback is used by a group of New Zealand primary school teachers when teaching mathematics. It aims to evaluate, using a qualitative methodology, the degree to which these teachers employ quality feedback procedures in their teaching and in their assessment of students' learning. An ethnographic approach was used to collect data in this study. Ethnographic research is part of the qualitative research paradigm and focuses on the study of people. In this case, classroom teachers and Year 5 and 6 students. Within this approach a range of data collection methods was used, these are: observations, teacher and student interviews, and perusal of documentation. Tunstall and Gipps' (1996) typology of feedback was used as a framework for gathering and analysing the data. This framework describes a range of ways in which teachers give feedback in the classroom. It is split into two distinct feedback types: evaluative and descriptive. Descriptive feedback gives students feedback about their learning, while evaluative feedback focuses on how students behave in the learning context. The results of this study are that as follows. Teachers used a range of feedback practices, both evaluative and descriptive. Good feedback practices appeared not to be dependent on the formal sharing of learning intentions and success criteria. In the classroom more descriptive feedback was used than evaluative feedback, though for most teachers this focussed on specifying attainment rather than constructing next learning steps. In student books more evaluative feedback was used than descriptive. In most classrooms students were not given the opportunity to action any feedback and close the 'learning gap', instead feedback information was used by the teacher to alter the next day's lesson, with the teacher not transferring the responsibility for learning to their students. Feedback practices appeared to be related to teacher's beliefs about teaching and learning. Students valued evaluative feedback. Teachers who accessed students' thinking spent more time discussing learning with their students. The study concludes with implications for practice and recommendations for further research.