Indirect writing feedback: a teaching strategy to improve students’ writing skills

By: Yella Dezas Perdani

Source: https://community.today.com/parentingteam/post/common-writing-challenges-high-school-students-encounter-and-ways-to-help-them

As it is included in the 2013 Indonesian National Curriculum, the importance of writing skills has been emphasized in Indonesia, particularly in senior high school contexts. According to the curriculum, one of the expected competencies in learning English, particularly for high school seniors, is the ability to write coherent and cohesive interpersonal, transactional, and functional texts (Ministry of Education and Culture, 2016). However, some students find writing to be challenging because they make numerous errors when writing compositions. Because English is not their native language. It is demonstrated by the preliminary interview with the school’s English teacher. In this regard, the students require assistance to identify errors and independently revise them, which will lead to long-term gains in the next writing activity. Thus, teachers’ written feedback is essential, as one of their roles in the classroom is to provide feedback.

            Regarding this, teachers are viewed as the most knowledgeable individuals who can guide students throughout the writing process. It is advantageous for teachers to intervene in order to close learning gaps and help students develop strategies for detecting, correcting, and avoiding errors. Students will gain a better understanding of what is required to produce meaningful writing.

            Several previous studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of teachers’ written feedback and found that the role of teacher, peer, and teacher-peer feedback in enhancing ESL students’ writing, found that students viewed teacher feedback as more effective than peer and self-feedback in enhancing the quality of their writing.         As one type of written feedback, indirect feedback involves indicating students’ errors without providing the correct forms to encourage them to be problem solvers and accountable for their progress. According to previous research, this implicit feedback is more effective than direct feedback. For example, a study revealed that indirect written feedback is effective for fostering student autonomy and long-term learning improvement, but it must be implemented with care so that students do not become confused about how to interpret the codes, symbols, and comments.

            Regarding this, indirect written feedback is advantageous for at least four reasons. First, it engages students in guided learning, in which they are assisted in identifying error sources using the codes and symbols provided by teachers. In contrast, problem-solving requires students to identify the correct forms of errors by interpreting the given hints. In this regard, there is learning. Second, indirect feedback encourages students to become self-editors who evaluate their writing by correcting errors and learning from their errors. Thirdly, indirect feedback provides students with long-term benefits because they are actively involved in “finding, correcting, and eventually avoiding errors” which prevents them from making the same error in the future. Fourthly, the use of comments as a form of indirect feedback demonstrates that teachers are enthusiastic about their students’ writing and willing to candidly inform them of their strengths and weaknesses. As a result, comments are useful for encouraging students to work more diligently on their essays, as they are aware that their teachers take great care of them.

            In conclusion, the significance of writing skills has been given great importance in Indonesia, specifically in senior high school settings, as stated in the 2013 Indonesian National Curriculum. In conclusion, teachers play a crucial role in closing learning gaps and assisting students in developing strategies for error detection, correction, and prevention. In conclusion, students will develop a clearer comprehension of the necessary elements for creating impactful written work. The students found that teacher feedback was more effective than peer and self-feedback in improving the quality of their writing. In conclusion, indirect feedback is a form of written feedback that focuses on highlighting students’ errors without directly providing the correct forms. Its purpose is to foster problem-solving skills and encourage students to take responsibility for their own progress.

– writing skills