- Give feedback that establishes goals: for further drafts of that paper, in future writing, as a student in your course.
- Ask questions which will help students clarify and develop their writing to meet the goals you have set.
- Respond first as reader, rather than as grammarian or grade giver, so students can see what sort of effect their writing had.
- Phrase suggestions in terms of the particular paper at hand, rather than generalizing. Studies show that students retain applied information about writing better than generalized information.
