Tell Me So I Can Hear

A developmental approach to feedback and collaboration

By Ellie Drago-Severson and Jessica Blum-DeStefano

Categories: Educator evaluation, Learning designs

December 2014

Feedback plays an important role in education. New teacher and principal evaluation systems, the Common Core State Standards, and Race to the Top initiatives, among others, underscore the critical importance of giving and receiving meaningful, actionable, and effective feedback to colleagues — regardless of their roles in schools. But when and where do educators learn how to give feedback, especially to adults who might make sense of others’ words, feedback, and ideas in different ways? And how might an educator’s own inclinations and orientations influence how others give and receive feedback? A new and promising developmental approach to feedback, called feedback for growth (Drago-Severson & Blum-DeStefano, in press), builds on what the field has taught educators about effective feedback and offers something more. “Growth” refers

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How to Create a Feedback Culture

The following tips and reflective opportunities can help create a feedback culture for growth in your school or district:

Share developmental ideas with colleagues. This can help establish a common language and lens for thinking and talking about feedback.

Ask colleagues how you might best support them when offering feedback. What, for instance, would feel most helpful to them? Generally, people are willing to share their needs when they feel safe and respected.

Consider how your own way of knowing might influence your preferences for giving feedback. Are there ways you might expand your style or approach to more effectively help colleagues tune in to your feedback?

References

Buron, R.J. & McDonald-Mann, D. (2011). Giving feedback to subordinates. Greensboro, NC: Center for Creative Leadership.

Danielson, C. (December 2010/January 2011). Evaluations that help teachers learn. Education Leadership, 68(4), 35-39.

Darling-Hammond, L. (2013). Getting teacher evaluation right: What really matters for effectiveness and improvement. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

Drago-Severson, E. (2004). Helping teachers learn: Principal leadership for adult growth and development. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Drago-Severson, E. (2009). Leading adult learning: Supporting adult development in our schools. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press & NSDC.

Drago-Severson, E. (2012). Helping educators grow: Strategies and practices for supporting leadership development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.

Drago-Severson, E. & Blum-DeStefano, J. (in press). The art of feedback: Tell me so I can hear you. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.

Drago-Severson, E., Blum-DeStefano, J., & Asghar, A. (2013). Learning for leadership: Developmental strategies for building capacity in our schools. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

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Kegan, R. (1994). In over our heads: The mental demands of modern life. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Kegan, R. (2000). What “form” transforms? A constructive-developmental approach to transformative learning. In J. Mezirow & Associates (Eds.), Learning as transformation (pp. 35-70). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Kegan, R. & Lahey, L.L. (2009). Immunity to change: How to overcome it and unlock the potential in yourself and your organization. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.

MacDonald, E. (2011, June). When nice won’t suffice: Honest discourse is key to shifting school culture. JSD, 32(3), 45-47, 51.

Marshall, K. (2013). Rethinking teacher supervision and evaluation: How to work smart, build collaboration, and close the achievement gap (2nd ed.). San Francisco, CA: John Wiley & Sons.

Stone, D. & Heen, S. (2014). Thanks for the feedback: The art and science of receiving feedback well. New York, NY: Penguin Group.