Week 3 Feedback Strategies

The first article I chose to read was titled Preschoolers and Praise: What Kinds of Messages Help Kids Grow? by Deborah Farmer Kris. I found this article interesting because it talked about providing feedback to children, which is generally the area most people disagree on how it should be handled. There's the argument between coddling kids versus being honest with them, and having real success versus giving participation awards. One idea that was mentioned which I found fairly insightful is why it's so important we manage the feedback kids get. The reason for that is that they are just beginning to understand their self-concept, i.e. how they fit into the world and how the world views them. The feedback they receive starting at a very young age goes a long way into shaping this, and should thus be handled with care. This article also once again brought up the topic of a growth mindset, which is quite important for kids, and how we can instill that type of mindset in them from a young age using positive and still truthful feedback. 

The second article I chose to read was titled Five Reasons to Stop Saying "Good Job" by Alfie Kohn. This article also talked about children, but I found it interesting due to its discussions of causing people to lose interest and creating "praise junkies". The losing interest portion of the article was most interesting to me, as it's not something people usually think about but once you do, you realize that it's true. The idea is that if you consistently praise someone for doing something, they'll only continue to do it as long as they get praised. Once the praise is removed, the person will lose interest in the activity. This point really drives home the idea that praise should be carefully selected and not just thrown around constantly. 

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