Strengths and Weaknesses

One of the most effective ways to give feedback for SLD students can be summed up as follows: Immediate, Concrete, Positive, and Specific

Give feedback immediately. If much time elapses between assignment and feedback, the student may forget the principle being practiced.

Give concrete examples that illustrate the principle you are evaluating and that help the student to learn the concept through their senses (e.g., object lessons).

Be positive in your evaluation: Look for areas where the student succeeds: "Your dialogue was very vivid in this areas." When giving suggestions, frame your comments in the positive: "This will be more effective when you . . . " rather than "This was wrong."

Be specific. SLD students often feel overwhelmed by information overload. When working with students, limit comments in the number and by specificity. Also, base comments on concrete illustrations. When working with a SLD, focus first on one specific strength - these students rarely recognize what they can do well. Next, focus on one specific area for improvement.

The following illustrates typical strengths and weaknesses for SLD students that may be considered when giving feedback.

1^st build on strengths	strong use of context clues	strong with holistic, visual images	strong at kinesthetic connections
2^nd cope with weakness	weak phonological awareness	weak at rote memorization weak at rapid word retrieval	weak with function words

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