Lotte Balcaen
stamps for spring ( dutch)
The Benefits of Teacher Stamps for Feedback
Teacher stamps can be hugely beneficial for teachers and children when used effectively. We wouldn’t suggest using stamps as a replacement for the verbal or written feedback you give but that feedback could be more succinct and to the point alongside the use of stamps. Here are a few reasons why they’re worth considering:
It Motivates Students
In a world where children are familiar with the idea of ‘likes’ and instant gratification, this reward system can be tailored to the children in the class to encourage and motivate their learning. Instant gratification provides a positive experience for the emotional part of the brain and stamps can support children feeling emotionally positive upon receiving feedback with a stamp.
Reduces Marking Time
As well as encouraging and motivating children, stamps can greatly reduce teacher marking time. The stamp can provide a structure to marking and can ensure a clear system for marking feedback in line with school marking policies. This structure, for example a tick list of success criteria for writing tasks, can support teachers but also can reinforce children’s understanding of non-negotiable targets that should be met within every piece of writing appropriate to their age group.
While saving 30 seconds writing time per book may not seem a huge amount, once multiplied over a class and subjects it can quickly build up. If you assume that a primary teacher has on average 30 books for a subject and four subjects per day to mark, in one day alone the stamps could save 15 minutes per subject being marked and one hour over the day. Stamps can, therefore, be used to benefit the key stakeholders for marking systems i.e. children and teachers.
