Marking and feedback
Marking and Feedback at Dallam School
Read on for explanations of how we approach marking and feedback across the school and how this supports learning in every subject. Scroll down to download subject-specific feedback documents, which show how whole-school feedback principles are applied in different curriculum areas.
Our principles
- To provide the best possible provision for all learners at Dallam School
- To ensure that teachers’ practice is the best it can be
- To ensure that our practice is evidence-informed
- To create a shared language about teaching and learning
- To ensure that our practice creates the conditions for all learners to succeed, whatever their starting point and whatever their challenges may be
- To make clear the connection between curriculum, pedagogy, assessment, adaptation, literacy and professional development
Our main evidence bases
The foundations of our approach to teaching and learning are the DfE Professional Development frameworks. These form the career-long “golden threads”, starting with the ITT Core Content Framework, leading into the Early Career Framework and then the NPQ frameworks.
We are also guided by:
- The Great Teaching Toolkit Evidence Review
- The work of the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF)
- Research from Deans for Impact in the US
We actively keep up to date with research outcomes to ensure that our evidence base stays relevant.
Feedback rationale
Effective marking and feedback help our students to make rapid progress across each of the subjects they study. This guidance provides teachers with clear expectations about the school’s approach to marking and feedback and has been developed with staff to identify effective approaches in each subject.
The whole-school policy sets out our general principles and expectations for feedback. Departments are then given a level of autonomy to identify what really great feedback looks like in their subject. Different subjects require different approaches to feedback. Not all subjects will give feedback in the same way or at the same time; this depends on the regularity of contact with students and the nature of the subject.
Each subject feedback policy identifies when students will receive specific types of feedback. In most cases, written feedback is given on summative assessments. After a summative assessment, students are given Directed Improvement and Reflection Time (DIRT) in lessons to reflect and improve, normally using a purple pen.
This marking and feedback guidance is an extension of our Assessment, Recording and Reporting Policy and sits within our wider Teaching and Learning guidance for staff.
Frequency and types of feedback
Teachers embed feedback into lessons at the point where it has the greatest impact on learning. The most effective feedback is immediate, involves the student in the process, and helps them make further progress.
Teachers build in “forgetting time” through Do Now Activities at the start of lessons. Regular retrieval practice allows teachers to assess understanding and adapt forthcoming learning.
Over time, feedback dialogue becomes visible in student exercise books or files. This may include:
- quality written feedback
- redrafting or correcting
- a sequence of lesson activities that develop an area of weakness
- a retrieval quiz to review learning
In practical subjects, feedback may look different; for example, in Art students may improve work using pencil rather than purple pen.
Teacher feedback includes actionable targets aimed at closing knowledge gaps. Feedback is provided approximately every 6–8 lessons for each class, with Heads of Faculty/Department identifying appropriate work for feedback and monitoring completion.
Feedback may take the form of:
- Individualised feedback (WWW / EBI)
- Whole-class feedback sheets and targets
- Coded marking for pupil correction
- Microsoft Teams assignment feedback
Marking and Feedback is at its best when…
| It is positive | It provides next steps | Students respond to feedback |
|---|---|---|
| Feedback helps students understand what they have done well and uses language that motivates and inspires progress. | Feedback clearly explains what a student needs to do to improve their work and make progress towards a higher grade. | Students demonstrate an excellent attitude to learning by reading feedback, listening to guidance, and acting on it to improve their knowledge, skills and understanding. |
Types of feedback and checking for understanding
Leading up to summative assessments, students receive feedback in lessons to identify gaps and address misconceptions. This may include:
- checking for understanding through questioning
- peer marking
- verbal feedback
- formative assessment activities
- assessment for learning techniques
Across subjects, teachers use approaches such as:
- questioning and checking for understanding
- whiteboards and hinge questions
- modelling and scaffolding, including visualiser and live modelling
- whole-class corrections and addressing misconceptions
- self and peer marking and feedback
- verbal live feedback
- Forms and Teams quizzes
Written feedback
Written feedback is normally provided on summative assessment points. Feedback highlights what students have done well and identifies specific steps for improvement, which may include:
- Praise – what has been done well
- Target – a step to improve knowledge or work
- Question – closing a knowledge gap or deepening thinking
- Challenge – extending learning further
KS3 Progress Descriptors
| Descriptor | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Developing | Students understand some core concepts but there are gaps. |
| Secure | Students understand core concepts with support. |
| Confident | Students can use core concepts with increasing independence. |
| Excelling | Students can independently apply concepts in unfamiliar contexts. |
At KS4 and KS5, where sufficient assessment objectives have been covered, feedback takes the form of a qualification grade.
How we monitor and improve marking and feedback
The school carries out regular monitoring activities to evaluate the progress students are making across all subject areas. We monitor progress through:
- Learning walks
- Book looks
- Student voice
- Assessment point data
Monitoring is carried out by the Senior and Extended Leadership Team and is supported at points throughout the year by governors and external partners such as the South Lakes Federation (SLF). Findings inform the School Improvement Plan and staff development through CPD.
Subject-specific feedback policies
The nature of feedback requires a subject-specific pedagogical approach. Each subject sets out what feedback looks like in their area, including when students receive written feedback, how verbal and whole-class feedback are used, and how retrieval practice and DIRT are built into the learning cycle.
