Madison Frederick

November 22, 2014

SED 464
Marzano Strategy 7: Setting Objectives and Providing Feedback
Marzano Strategy 7 has to do with properly setting objectives and providing feedback for
students. An objective is a formulated goal that teachers share with their students so they are
aware of what direction their learning is going and what is expected of them (Marzano). Some
useful objectives may be student oriented and include descriptive learning outcomes. Essentially,
the objectives need to be clear, understandable and observable. Students should be able to go
back to the objectives after a lesson and be able to confidently know what each objective is and
how it was integrated into the material that was just learned. Setting objectives also includes subobjectives. Sub-objectives further break down the general goals into more specific and
observable objectives by outlining knowledge students need to know, skills they need to be able
to do and highlighting the importance of students mastering the material. They are also aligned
and logically sequenced to the lessons major objective. When it comes to actually setting
objectives, the goals should not be too specific. This may confuse students and make them feel
overwhelmed with all the material they are about to learn if the objectives are too lengthy and
complex. Therefore, they should be easily adaptable to the students own objectives. They also
should provide the students with direction for their learning and keep the teacher on track
towards their specific goal. The objectives ultimately keep everyone, teacher and students, on the
same page so that the process of teaching a new lesson runs more cohesively and smoothly.
Setting objectives is extremely important because it specifies what a student should learn and
master in a lesson or unit. Therefore, if the student is feeling lost, they can go back and read the
objectives and know what goal the teacher is trying to reach. Setting objectives are also
important because it highlights what are important, outlines imperative topics and can be a way
to measure progress and proficiency among students. So when teachers have clearly defined

Madison Frederick
November 22, 2014
SED 464
objectives, there is an overall of: better instruction, more effective learning, better evaluation of
students by the instructor and students become better self-evaluators. I personally like the idea
that students are able to go back and test themselves based on the objectives. Therefore, if
students go back and cannot comprehend the objectives, then they need to reread their notes, or
get extra help from the teacher.
Strategy 7 also focuses on providing feedback to students. Feedback can be defined as
any type of reaction, whether it be verbal emotional, body language, etc., that is given in
response to a personal performance of a given task and is intended for improvement (Marzano).
Feedback is also raising awareness of strengths and areas of potential improvement. However,
when giving feedback, it is crucial that the teacher first focuses on the positives then leaves room
for the improvement aspect. This way, students do not feel unmotivated by the constant criticism
they are receiving and talked down to by the teacher. Therefore, the feedback should provide
motivation and encourage critical thinking as well as verification of progression toward a
particular goal.
When giving feedback, there are appropriate and inappropriate ways to approach a
student with advice on how to improve. Some good feedback examples are to give immediate
responses to questions and misconceptions rather than telling the students you will tell them
later. This also ties in with giving students tests and other worksheets back the next day when the
material is still fresh in their head. Therefore when feedback is given, students can easily
understand why they got something wrong rather than a week after they took the test or filled out
the worksheet. Another example of good feedback is to provide constructive criticism in a
positive manner, rather than being condescending to the student(s) and to also again, comment
equally on strengths and weaknesses to avoid un-motivating the student. Some ideas of

Madison Frederick
November 22, 2014
SED 464
inappropriate feedback would to be making personal comments to students and speaking to
students to avoid writing down or creating PowerPoints. I believe the worst kind of feedback is
when the teacher deploys the same comments for all students such as, This is not your best
work or you need to do better. When a teacher approaches feedback in that manner, it doesnt
allow the students to improve. Each students thinking process is different; therefore students are
not going to understand the same concepts as others.
When integrating Marzano Strategy number 7 into a lesson plan, teachers need to pay
extra attention to their objectives and feedback. In the beginning of the lesson the teacher will
explicitly post the objectives in the beginning of the lesson so students can go back and reference
it for self-evaluation if needed. Students will then partake in a five question quiz that will test
their knowledge on Mendelian Genetics. However, students will have to distinguish genotypes
and phenotypes among other students. They will then complete a blank punnett square of a
simple cross and the teacher will review them and incorporate students feedback in order to
answer their questions.

Madison Frederick
November 22, 2014
SED 464
References

Marzano's Nine Instructional Strategies for Effective Teaching and Learning.

(2010, November 11). Retrieved November 18, 2014