Have you ever spent hours correcting student writing—marking every error, fixing every verb, circling every agreement mistake—only to see those same exact errors show up on the next assignment? What if the issue isn’t your students… and it’s not your effort… but the way you’re giving feedback? Today we’re talking about how to shift your writing feedback so students actually use it, improve their accuracy, and build confidence—without you spending your entire weekend grading.
Topics in this Episode:
- The core issue: When we correct everything, student writing doesn’t seem to improve. Why? Because:
- There’s no clear focus
- There’s too much cognitive load
- There’s no pattern recognition
- There’s no prioritization
- And most importantly: Students don’t know what matters.
- Instead of correcting everything, it is more effective to focus on a few things that actually move learning forward.
- Two key approaches: Focused Error Correction (Gianfranco Conti), Focus Correction Areas (Collins Writing)
- When you make this shift:
- Students actually read your feedback
- They know what to fix
- They improve in targeted area
- You spend less time grading
- And here’s the big one: Writing starts to feel doable for students
- Ready For Tomorrow Quick Win PD Course: Quick and Effective Writing Feedback
A Few Ways We Can Work Together:
- Ready For Tomorrow Quick Win PD for Individual Teachers
- On-Site or Virtual Workshops for Language Departments
- Self-Paced Program for For Language Departments
Connect With Me & The World Language Classroom Community:
- Website: wlclassrom.com
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- Facebook Group: World Language Classroom
- Facebook: /wlclassroom
- LinkedIn: Joshua Cabral
- Bluesky: /wlclassroom.bsky.socia
- X (Twitter): @wlclassroom
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