Why Does It Matter?

Chapter 1 Adopt a Language of Learning

A good coach can change a game. A great coach can change a life. —John Wooden

Feedback has the power to transform any classroom from a culture of compliance to a culture of learning, all while maximizing student self-awareness and growth. By intentionally using the language of learning in the classroom, teachers create a culture of vulnerability, encourage risk taking, reduce competition, and build confi dence in their learners.

Shifting the ways that teachers and their students communicate about learning and interact with one another initiates a powerful transformation in the classroom. Students come to know that it is acceptable to reach profi ciency at diff erent times, and their teachers will coach them to that level of understanding. Making simple changes such as speaking about next steps instead of what is incorrect, talking to each student individually about his or her current profi ciency, and teaching students how to communicate about their own learning helps transform the culture. Th e teacher’s language choices create the narrative of the culture, whether that is teacher- or student-centered.

Why does it matter when teachers carefully choose words? How does this work, and what does it look like? Th is chapter answers these questions.

Why Does It Matter?

Everything teachers do in the classroom is communication. Whether it be the way they address the entire class, their body language, or one-on-one conversations with students, they are sending and receiving messages continuously. Students are watching and listening and in turn modeling what the teacher does. Th e language with which teachers deliver feedback plays an important role; it can support student