Feedback is a Gift

❓How do you feel about giving, receiving, and asking for feedback? Share your thoughts in the padlet below.

Imagine you're writing code for a program. You spend hours working on it, making sure everything runs smoothly. Now, when you show your code to someone else – maybe a professor, a colleague, or even a friend – they give you feedback. They point out areas where your code could be improved, suggest better ways to solve problems, or even find bugs you hadn't noticed. At first, it might feel like criticism, and it's natural to feel a bit defensive. However, if you think about it, that feedback is incredibly valuable. Here's why:

• Feedback helps you learn and grow. By understanding what you did well and where you can improve, you become a better programmer. Each piece of feedback is like a lesson that helps you become more proficient in coding.

• Others might see things in your code that you didn't notice. They might have different experiences or knowledge that allows them to offer insights you hadn't considered. This broadens your understanding and improves the quality of your work.

• Learning to accept feedback gracefully is an essential skill in any field, including computer science. It teaches you to separate your work from your self-worth and to see criticism as an opportunity for improvement rather than a personal attack.

• Feedback helps ensure that your code is of high quality. By having others review it, you can catch errors and improve efficiency before deploying it in a real-world scenario. This can save time and resources in the long run.

• In the professional world, coding is rarely a solo activity. You often work in teams where giving and receiving feedback is crucial for collaboration. Learning how to give and receive feedback effectively fosters better teamwork and communication skills.

Receiving Feedback

Advise John

❓ Read the scenario below, and give John advice on how he should respond to Mohammed's feedback.

It is Sunday afternoon, and Mohammed, an instructor at Kibo, is grading the latest set of assignments submitted by his students. Among them is John, a talented student known for his confidence in his coding abilities.

Mohammed begins to go through John's assignment, he notices several areas where improvement could be made. He meticulously jots down his feedback, highlighting potential errors and suggesting alternative approaches. Once he is finished grading all the assignments, he publishes the grades and feedback on Gradescope.

An hour later, Mohammed receives a DM from John in Discord, querying his assignment grade and requesting a meeting to clarify the feedback notes. Mohammed asks John to attend office hours the next day so that they can discuss.

At office hours: "John, I've looked over your assignment, and while there are some good aspects to it, there are also a few areas where you could improve," Mohammed begins, his tone gentle yet firm.

John leans back in his chair, crossing his arms defensively. "Really? I thought I nailed it. What seems to be the problem?"

"Well, for starters," Mohammed points to a section of John's code on the screen, "this algorithm could be optimized to run more efficiently. And here," he gestures to another part, "you've used a loop where a recursive function might be more elegant."

John's expression tightens as he listens to Mohammed's critique. "I don't know, Mohammed. I think my approach works just fine. Besides, I've already tested it extensively, and it's producing the correct outputs."

Mohammed nods patiently. "I understand that your code is functional, but as your instructor, it's my job to help you not just achieve functionality but also to improve your coding skills. Learning to write more efficient and elegant code will benefit you in the long run."

John lets out a sigh, feeling his pride bristle against the feedback. "I appreciate your input, Mohammed, but I think I'll stick with my current implementation for now. I've got a lot on my plate, and I don't want to spend too much time tweaking this assignment."

Mohammed raises an eyebrow, recognizing the familiar resistance. "John, I encourage you to take this feedback into consideration. Growth often comes from stepping out of our comfort zones and embracing constructive criticism."

With a reluctant nod, John acknowledges Mohammed's advice, though it's clear he's not entirely convinced. As he leaves the call, he mulls over the feedback, grappling with the decision to either accept it or not.

📺 Watch this video to learn how to receive feedback.

Tip 1: Be open to feedback.

Tip 2: Listen to understand, not to refute.

Tip 3: Ask clarifying questions.

Tip 4: Respond with grace, not defensively. Do not deflect or dismiss the feedback.

Tip 5: Ask for time to process the feedback.

Tip 6: Summarize what you've heard.

Tip 7: Show appreciation.

Tip 8: Corroborate the feedback.

While receiving feedback verbally is often preferred, since we now learn and work in virtual contexts, the majority of the feedback that you receive might be in written form. Strangely, this often makes it hard to receive. Even when the same message is being communicated.

Written feedback can sometimes be harder to receive than verbal feedback due to several factors. Firstly, it lacks the tone and context often conveyed through verbal communication, leading to potential misinterpretation and perceived harshness. Additionally, the immediacy and opportunity for real-time dialogue provided by verbal feedback are absent in written forms, leaving recipients with a sense of finality. The permanence of written feedback, often documented or saved electronically, can increase anxiety about its content and implications. Additionally, without the nonverbal cues present in verbal interactions, written feedback may seem impersonal and difficult to interpret accurately. Finally, the lack of opportunity for immediate clarification or follow-up questions in written feedback can leave recipients feeling uncertain about how to address or improve upon the feedback received.

So for these reasons, it is worth also learning more about how to receive written feedback specifically.

📺 Watch this video to learn how to receive critical written feedback.

The key to receiving written feedback is really separating the content of the feedback from your emotional reaction to the feedback. Firstly, approach the feedback with an open mind and a willingness to learn and improve. Take the time to read through the feedback, ensuring you understand the points being made. It can be helpful to read it multiple times to fully grasp the content and context. As the video demonstrated, reading the feedback multiple times with increasing levels of thoroughness can help "inoculate" you from the emotional response. When reading the feedback, try to remain objective and avoid taking the feedback personally, recognizing that it is meant to help you grow and develop. If you're uncertain about any aspects of the feedback, don't hesitate to seek clarification from the sender. Consider the feedback in relation to your goals and objectives, and identify specific actions you can take to address any areas for improvement.

Asking for Feedback

It is easy to think of feedback as a passive process. In other words, something that happens to you, whether you want it or not. This passive view of feedback involves receiving feedback without actively seeking it out or taking deliberate steps to engage with it. For example, receiving performance evaluations from your manager without actively soliciting input or reflecting on the feedback and taking action. This is a bad way to think about feedback. If you approach feedback passively, you ultimately won't get the most benefit from the feedback. because 1) you aren't using the feedback to improve your performance, and 2) you are waiting for someone else to do you the favor (and yes, it is a favor) of giving you feedback.

Alternatively, you can view feedback as an active process, where individuals take proactive steps to seek out feedback, reflect on it, and actively incorporate it into their work or behavior. This active approach to feedback will enable you to get the most out of feedback. The first step to having an active approach to feedback is to follow the tips and steps given above about how to receive feedback well. The second step, is to learn to proactively ask for feedback as well.

📺 Watch this video to learn how to ask for feedback.

Here is a summary of the tips from the video:

Tip 1a - Make sure you have a clear understanding of what kind of feedback you are looking for so you can be clear on what you are looking to improve.

Tip 1b - Use a framework when asking for feedback, e.g., The Continue, Stop, Start framework.

Tip 2 - Give the person permission to provide open and honest feedback, then honor that request.

Tip 3 - Listen without judgement.

Tip 4 - Write down everything they have to say.

Tip 5 - Thank the person for their feedback.

Tip 6 - Report back on how you used their feedback.

(Optional) Giving Feedback

In this lesson, we won't delve into how to give feedback, but below are two optional videos that deal with the topic.

📺 Watch this video to learn how to give feedback.

📺 Watch this video to learn how to give peer feedback.