"What Do You Mean by That?" Feedback as a Way to Bolster Beliefs in Student Potential

• In Event: Teacher Beliefs and Practices to Foster Engaged Literacy Learning

Abstract

When a teacher demonstrates belief in a student’s potential, it can engender stronger relationships with that student and in turn produce stronger academic outcomes. This project investigates how teachers develop these beliefs about student potential through their interactions with student written work, and specifically how racial/ethnic stereotypes might influence these beliefs. In two experimental studies, I test how teachers’ varying levels of engagement with student written work – pure assessment, superficial feedback, engaged feedback – influence teachers’ perceptions of students’ academic potential in the future. Ultimately, the aim of this work is to inform how we train teachers and structure classrooms to produce equal expectations and outcomes for all students.

Authors

• Camilla Mutoni Griffiths, Stanford University

• Jennifer Lynn Eberhardt, Stanford University