The focus of The Cambridge Handbook on Instructional Feedback is on feedback as it manifests itself across various instructional settings and contexts. Learners at all levels receive a wealth of feedback messages on a daily – or even hourly – basis. Teachers, coaches, parents, peers – all have suggestions and advice on how to improve or sustain a certain level of performance. In a classroom context, sharing learning intentions, clarifying criteria for success, providing information that moves learners forward, and activating students as the owners of their learning are essential functions of feedback (Black & Wiliam, 2009). Inarguably, feedback is a key element of successful instructional practices – those that lead to best improvement (see, e.g., Hattie and Timperley, 2007). Researchers agree that feedback is essential for improved performance, but we also know that learners often dread feedback and dismiss it and that the effectiveness of feedback varies depending on specific characteristics of feedback messages that learners receive (see, e.g., Lipnevich & Smith, 2008). This volume brings together extant literature on feedback across multiple academic domains, contexts, and levels of schooling, and attempts to clarify a range of questions that relate to various aspects of feedback, including its type, level of specificity, frequency, context, and timing. The book paints an expansive picture of the current state of research on instructional feedback, discussing both the theory and areas of application. The volume focuses specifically on the most important constituents and components of feedback:

1. 1. Those who provide feedback

2. 2. Those who receive feedback

3. 3. Characteristics of feedback

4. 4. The context of feedback.

The volume comprises five parts. Part I focuses on existing theory, presenting definitions, characteristics, methodological issues, and a general conceptual framework of instructional feedback, and describing existing taxonomies of instructional feedback (see Table 0.1 for a brief description of chapters included in this volume). The contributors situate feedback within the framework of formative assessment. Wiliam (Chapter 1) opens this part with a discussion of feedback in the larger historical context. Wiliam discusses whether feedback works, the magnitude of the impact on learning, and what kinds of feedback work best. One of the key points of this chapter is that feedback interventions need to take greater account of the crucial difference between learning and performance that has been a fundamental concept in memory research for decades. In Chapter 2, Stobart argues that feedback has to be carefully related to the proficiency of the learner and cannot be treated as a generic template to be applied mechanically. He discusses different types of feedback and how they should be matched to different levels of student performance. In Chapter 3, Brookhart juxtaposes feedback in summative and formative contexts and emphasizes the importance of student agency, whereas in Chapter 4, Murray, Gasson, and Smith propose a taxonomy of written feedback messages, allowing for a more systematic look at how feedback influences achievement. Brown and Harris (Chapter 5) conclude this part with a survey of the different methods currently being used to investigate feedback in empirical studies.

Part II covers research on feedback at different levels and areas of schooling, discussing specifics of cognitive, emotional, and psychosocial development of learners as well as best approaches to feedback delivery at different developmental levels. The contributors explain the specifics of feedback delivery across subject domains and other instructional settings. Tan and Wong (Chapter 6) attempt to answer the question of whether feedback in primary schools can enhance students’ “independent” learning and at the same time aid students in achieving necessary learning outcomes for high-stakes examinations. The discussion is situated in the context of schooling in Singapore. Chapters 7 through 10 describe specifics of presenting feedback in the domains of writing, math, science, and music. Graham (Chapter 7) summarizes research on feedback effectiveness in the domain of writing and discusses challenges of providing good quality feedback on students’ written assignments. Small and Lin (Chapter 8) explore various aspects of offering feedback to students who are learning mathematics. This chapter includes examples at a variety of grade levels of how to connect feedback to learning objectives, including attention to assumptions students do or do not make. In Chapter 9, Ruiz-Primo and Kroog present results of a study in which they closely examined assessment artifacts, focusing on feedback presented to students in math and science classrooms. Music represents yet another academic domain with unique characteristics of teacher–student relationships and consequently the characteristics of assessment and feedback. Parkes (Chapter 10) explores three broad areas of feedback in music instruction that include teacher behaviors, peer and student feedback, and sensory feedback in the performance of music.

The importance of noncognitive (or psychosocial) skills in education is no longer disputed; researchers and practitioners are pondering these issues as they relate to feedback that may help students to enhance such skills. What kind of information should be provided to students that will help them to become more conscientious, motivated, or resilient? In Chapter 11, Murano, Martin, Burrus, and Roberts try to formulate answers to these questions and discuss the role of feedback in the development of noncognitive skills. The researchers present various approaches to feedback for cognitive skills and argue that feedback recommendations for cognitive skills transfer to noncognitive skills as well. Chapter 12, by van der Meer and Dawson, and Chapter 13, by Sargeant and Watling, discuss challenges and specific characteristics in the context of higher education and medical education, respectively. The authors argue that effective feedback should go beyond its corrective purpose and should contribute to students’ developing dispositions, perspectives, and skills for life beyond academia. Chapter 14, by Athota and Malik, concludes this section and discusses 360-degree feedback in a workplace. The authors describe a multi-rater approach and possible issues that might arise when providing feedback in a workplace context.

In Part III the researchers discuss various modes of feedback delivery and the diversity of contexts for feedback presentation. Munshi and Deneen (Chapter 15) explore issues and make suggestions on technology-enhanced feedback in a systematic review of literature. Key points include the implications of who is driving the dialog around technology-enhanced feedback, what works well in technology-enhanced feedback, and where there seem to be persistent and significant gaps in research and practice. In Chapter 16, Homer, Ober, and Plass examine the ways in which digital games can be used to authentically evaluate learners’ knowledge and skills. Challenges are examined, including lack of general acceptance of games as assessment tools, potential for extraneous cognitive load caused by the gaming environment, and a culture of exploration and “cheats/hacks” in games. The researchers conclude with some examples of current “best practices” in game-based assessment and recommendations for next steps in the field. In Chapter 17, Andrade focuses on self-assessment, defined as the act of monitoring one’s processes and products in order to make adjustments that deepen learning and enhance performance. Andrade suggests that self-assessment is most beneficial, in terms of both achievement and self-regulated learning, when it is used formatively. Panadero, Jonsson, and Alqassab (Chapter 18) examine the concept of peer feedback, discussing the key empirical themes that have been investigated. Issues related to trust, relationships between peers, and the nature of the task are discussed, along with recommendations and specific conditions that influence the effectiveness of peer feedback. In Chapter 19, Guskey discusses feedback in the context of Bloom’s mastery learning theory, exploring the concept of “pre-assessment” and how it plays into instructional practice. Kanjee (Chapter 20) and Arimoto and Clark (Chapter 21) explicate feedback in international contexts of South Africa and Japan, respectively. Kanjee explores primary school teachers’ written feedback practices in South Africa, and how they expect their learners to respond to this feedback. Arimoto and Clark extend the cross-cultural exploration and contrast the Western perspective of the child as a “student” or “pupil” with the Japanese practice of “zenjin education,” translating most closely to “whole-child education.” This part concludes with Kaufman and Pagel’s (Chapter 22) discussion of feedback presented in the context of animal training. The authors draw parallels with situations in which one person’s language or understanding thereof is not the same as another’s.

In Part IV the contributors focus on characteristics of learners and discuss variables that relate to students’ receptivity and active use of feedback. Stiggins (Chapter 23) examines the effectiveness of feedback from the student’s (information recipient’s) perspective. In Chapter 24, Jonsson and Panadero discuss ways that help to facilitate students’ engagement with their feedback, whereas Goetz, Lipnevich, Krannich, and Gogol (Chapter 25) focus on students’ emotional reactions to feedback. Holinger and Kaufman in Chapter 26 explicate the relationship between creativity and feedback (and the related construct of evaluation) from several different research perspectives: the motivational approach, the cognitive approach, and the individual differences/personality approach.

In Part V, the editors (Smith and Lipnevich, Chapter 27) join forces in an attempt to integrate these various elements into a coherent whole. In the process, we make a series of recommendations for future research, policy, and practice.

All in all, this book provides a comprehensive summary and evaluation of current research and can serve as a resource for scholars and practitioners to make informed decisions about the inner workings of instructional feedback in their respective educational programs. Humbly, we hope that researchers, students, policymakers, and practitioners alike will find this volume to be of value.