An Experimental Comparison of the Effect of Teacher Versus Self‑Evaluation/Self‑Reflection Feedback on College Students’ Behavioral Observation Skills

An experimental investigation of the effectiveness of two types of feedback on college students’ acquisition of behavioral observation skills was conducted. Special education and psychology students completed two training assignments involving behavioral observations of students engaging in problem behavior. Depending on the condition to which they were randomly assigned, participants experienced either teacher or self-evaluation/self-reflection feedback immediately after each assignment was completed. Participants in the teacher feedback condition scored higher on the post-training assignments and viewed it more positively than those in the self-evaluation/self-reflection condition. Additional research is needed to identify the relevant variables contributing to effective teacher feedback since it is a frequent component of instructional situations.