Journal of Educational Studies

Volume 4, number 1, 2022, pp. 5–30

THE ROLE OF FEEDBACK IN THE

LEARNING PROCESS
OF STUDENTS
Evelyn R. Obo1

Abstract
Feedback is described as valuable and significant comments, sugges-
tions, or criticisms on a performance or tasks of a person or a student to
better improve future performances or tasks. Everybody benefits from
feedback. Every student in class hopes to better his/her performance and
feedback matters a lot to them. Hence, students all over the world com-
plain about not receiving the appropriate feedback. This thought
prompted the researcher to inquire about the role of feedback in the
learning process of students. Anchored on Thorndike’s principle of learn-
ing which espouses pleasant learning, the study supports the role of
feedback in the learning process of students. The study hopes to inten-
sify the role of feedback in the learning process and to remind educators
that there is a strong need for students to receive timely and appropriate
feedback for learning to be fluid. Using phenomenology, the study found
out that positive, immediate, sincere, and kind feedback make students
learn and get the needed competencies that help them succeed.
Keywords
Role of feedback, learning process, phenomenology, Filipino students

INTRODUCTION
Feedback plays an important role in the learning process of stu-
dents. Feedback is either verbal, written, or gestural reply of a
teacher to a student’s performance, task, or behavior (University
of South Carolina, n.d.). The purpose of feedback is to improve the

1
Evelyn R. Obo, PhD, De La Salle University-Dasmariñas, Philippines,
erobo@dlsud.edu.ph.
5
student’s performance and allow learning to take place. Hence, it
is surprising to know that students in many parts of the globe de-
sire to receive feedback because they do not get it, they get it very
late, or they are dissatisfied with the feedback they receive (Al-
Bashir, Kabir, & Rahman, 2016; Birtill, 2022).
Being a teacher in the Philippines for more than two decades,
the very same complaints of not being able to receive the feed-
back on time and feedback dissatisfaction are also often reported
during oral evaluation and informal talks with students. The study
of Tampal, Betasolo, Cumpa, Segundo, Apalisok, and Ablen (2019)
found out that students’ academic performance and behavior are
affected by feedback. Feedback, therefore, is a serious issue that
must be given premium in any academic institution.
Literatures provide a number of studies conducted on the giv-
ing of feedback. The studies of Simon (2013) and Stenger (2014)
both affirm that giving of immediate feedback helps improve stu-
dents’ performance. Most literatures available basically focus on
the effectiveness of giving of prompt feedback and on giving of
written feedback or simply giving feedback. Studies discussed the
importance of giving feedback in general sense to improve the stu-
dents’ general academic performance. Hence, an important as-
pect of discussing the role of feedback in the learning process of
students is scarcely addressed (Alam & Uddin, 2013; Al-Enzy &
Jesudas, 2016; DeFranzo, 2022; Matthew, 2020; Tampal, Betasolo,
Cumpa, Segundo, Apalisok, & Ablen, 2019).
Past and recent studies conducted explain the importance of
feedback but the question on why until this time students still
clamor for appropriate and timely feedback is a challenge that
should be resolved. According to one Filipino senior high school
teacher interviewed, the large number of students in one class
leave teachers with no choice but to give written feedback after
every performance and/or a general verbal feedback when time
would still permit them to do so. In some situations, though, feed-
back would be given in the succeeding meeting, believing that

6
what matters most is that feedback is given. However, Stenger
(2014) explained that feedback is more effective when given im-
mediately.
The dissatisfaction of students in the feedback that they re-
ceive and the plight of the teachers inside the classroom are valid
claims. Hence, this study intends to reiterate and intensify the role
of feedback in the students’ learning process and to remind edu-
cators that no matter how challenging, appropriate feedback
needs to be delivered. In addition, this study hopes to raise aware-
ness among educators and students that feedback needs to be
comprehensible. The meaning of the feedback that the educators
want to give is the same as how the students interpret it for learn-
ing to take place (Al-Bashir, Kabir, & Rahman, 2016).

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Facts about Feedback

Feedback considerably helps in improving students’ perfor-
mance and other learning tasks. It is a traditional method yet its
effect on students’ learning cannot be denied (Al-Enzy & Jesudas,
2016; DeFranzo, 2022; Matthew, 2020). They need to know to
what extent they have succeeded in reaching out to the audience.
An affirmative feedback feeds the learning process.
The theory espoused by Chickering and Gamson (1987) on the
seven principles of good teaching practice included the giving of
prompt feedback to students. Students need frequent opportuni-
ties to perform and receive suggestions for improvement (Van-
couver Island University, 2018). Later, Chickering and Gamson
(1999) revised this principle and added assessment to it. Students
need chances to reflect on what they have learned, what they still
need to know, and how to assess themselves (Vancouver Island
University, 2018).
Productive feedback motivates students. Learners are moti-
vated to perform well if feedback is given positively. Implementing
7
a new feedback strategy and making students understand the
meaning of the feedback is very important to better students’
skills (Al-Enzy & Jesudas, 2016). Wong and Waring (2009) averred
that positive feedback is very important. Teachers should remem-
ber that feedback should include sincere and specific praises. It is
also affirming for students if the teacher would ask the opinions
of their peers and certainly engage the students in proper self-re-
flection.

Strategies in Giving Feedback

Al-Enzy and Jesudas (2016), Matthew (2020), Simons (2013),
Stenger (2014), and Wong and Waring (2009) explain some useful
strategies and tips for the giving of feedback to be effective:
1. The feedback should be very specific which refers to sup-
plying the learners with specific information about what
they are doing right or wrong. The teacher should take the
time to provide learners with information on what exactly
they did well, and what may still need improvement. The
praises must be given sincerely and very kindly.
2. The feedback should be given at once which affirms the
findings of numerous studies indicating that feedback is
most effective when it is given immediately, rather than a
few days, weeks, or months down the line. Studies found
that participants who were given immediate feedback per-
formed well in the succeeding performances than those
who had received delayed feedbacks.
3. The feedback should address the learner's improvement
toward a goal which means that effective feedback is most
often based on the specific goals that the students hope to
achieve. When giving feedback, the teachers should make
it clear to students how information they receive will help
them progress toward a final goal. The feedback should aid
the learning process of the students.

8
 4. The feedback should be presented carefully which means
that the way feedback is presented can impact how it is re-
ceived. This means that even the most well-meaning feed-
back can come in the wrong way, thus reducing the learn-
er's motivation. It must be noted that feedback should be
given positively.
5. The teacher should also ask the opinions of the class as
this creates a sense of affirmation on the part of the stu-
dents and could motivate them to maintain their good per-
formance or to improve it. Allowing students to evaluate
the performance of their peers help them to be critical as
well.
6. The students should be engaged in the process of giving
feedback for recognizing the importance of involving the
learners in the process of evaluating their performance.
Pennebaker, Chung, Frazee, Lavergne, and Beaver (2014)
assert that when students have access to this information,
they develop an awareness of learning and can recognize
mistakes and develop strategies for tackling weaknesses.
The engagement in the process allows students to engage
in self-reflection.
Deci (2013) identified circumstances when feedback is ineffec-
tive: (a) when the learner feels strictly observed, this gives a feel-
ing of so much tension and nervousness. Learners become so con-
scious which may lead to disengaging from learning; (b) when
learners interpret feedback as an attempt to control them, this
makes them feel controlled rather than guided thus resulting in
non-improvement; (c) when learners feel that there is competi-
tion, feedback from peers may be good but learners should be
guided properly for them not to feel that there is competition
among them. This feeling of competition could also disengage the
learners.
To avoid these situations, previous studies recommend that
the learners must fully understand the purpose of any monitoring

9
and how the feedback is purposed to help them compete against
their individual outcomes and not against each other. In the study
of Eraut (2006), it was explained that the feedback that students
previously received plays an important role in shaping their learn-
ing process. The study of Al-Bashir et al. (2016) affirms that learn-
ers should understand what a good performance is, be provided
with quality information about their learning, be asked if feedback
is clear and comprehensible, and be oriented about reflective
learning. It is also important that learners should feel the motiva-
tion and the sincerity in the feedback given (Al-Enzy & Jesudas,
2016; Deci, 2013; Wong & Waring, 2009).

Thorndike and the Law of Effect

Pennebaker et al. (2014, as cited in Stenger, 2014), explains
that the role of feedback has always been central. When learning
new skills, anyone needs feedback for him/her to know if what
s/he is doing is right. Feedback is defined as information about a
person’s performance of a task, or a product used as basis for im-
provement. It could be from teacher, peer, or others (Hattie,
1999). Leibold and Shwarz (2015) say that “learners may also trade
feedback with each other about coursework” (p. 35).
Oxford Learning Institute (n.d.) of the University of Oxford ex-
plains that, in order “for feedback to be helpful, it needs to be
given in a concerned and supportive way and to include both pos-
itive and negative observations” (p. 1). The feedback to be given
must be specific and clear and suggestions for improvements must
be identified. The students should be encouraged to assess and
reflect on their performance as well. The teachers should also be
aware that the immediate response of anyone to negative feed-
back may be defensive, thus, it must be addressed in the most
concerned and cordial manner (Oxford Learning institute, n.d.).
One of the popular figures who contributed the most to the be-
lief that giving of feedback almost always improves performance
is Thorndike. Thorndike (1913) provided the initial theoretical
10
arguments for the effectiveness of feedback with his law of effect.
This theoretical perspective equated positive feedback with rein-
forcement and negative feedback with punishment. Kluger and
DeNisi (1996) mentioned that positive and negative feedback have
good effects on learning.
Considerable number of studies were conducted on giving
feedback and its importance however, it remains a fact as well
that until now prompt and proper feedback is the call of most stu-
dents in elementary, high school and college. Delay in the delivery
of proper feedback happens because there is also an unsolved
problem of teachers having too many students in class. Students
demand timely and appropriate feedback and teachers cannot de-
liver due to too large number of students in class. These contra-
dicting issues should not deter the fluidity of the learning process
thus, the desire to emphasize and rediscover the role of feedback
in the learning process of students prompted the researcher to
conduct this study. The findings of this study apart from being con-
tributory to the existing literatures intend to emphasize that there
is a need for educators to review and rediscover the very im-
portant role of feedback in the learning process of students.
As mentors, classroom teachers have the crucial role of provid-
ing guidance to their students. It is the mentors’ obligation to help
the students identify and learn the skills and knowledge needed
to improve their ability to express himself/herself. Feedback al-
lows the teacher to acknowledge their students’ strengths and to
motivate them to work on his/her areas of weaknesses. Educators
should keep in mind that their students want and need their feed-
back to move forward. It is the teacher’s creativity on how feed-
back could be promptly delivered amid the big number of students
in class (Al-Enzy & Jesudas, 2016; DeFranzo, 2022; Simon, 2013).

11
METHODOLOGY

Purpose of the Study

The main purpose of this study was to determine the role of
feedback in the learning process of students.

Research Questions
This study sought to answer the following questions:
1. What are the positive and negative effects of feedback to
students’ learning ability?
2. How does feedback affect the students’ ability to grasp the
needed competencies?
3. What kind of feedback would help students improve?
4. What is the role of feedback in the students’ learning pro-
cess?

Methods
The study uses a qualitative approach and phenomenological
design. According to Creswell (1994), a qualitative study is “de-
fined as an inquiry process of understanding a social or human
problem, based on building a complex, holistic picture, formed
with words, detailed views of informants, and which is conducted
in a natural setting”. Phenomenology, on the other hand describes
a common experience of individuals regarding a phenomenon
(Creswell, 2013). In this study, the experiences of getting feedback
high school, senior high school, and college students from differ-
ent academic institutions in the province of Cavite were docu-
mented through focus group discussion, in-depth interviews, and
the written narratives of the student participants. These were
done to develop a composite description of the essence of the ex-
perience common to all the participants. Moreover, the study
sought to find out the role of feedback in the learning process of
students.

12
 The data were analyzed following the steps discussed by Cre-
swell (2013) reflecting mostly of Moustakas (1994) ways of anal-
yses. It began from horizontalization where the transcripts of in-
terviews, the written narratives of students, and the journal en-
tries of the researcher with highlighted significant statements
were used to understand the experiences of the participants. The
textural descriptions were drawn based on the common, domi-
nant, and recurring responses of the participants during the inter-
views and those found in their written narratives. Then, the struc-
tural descriptions were analyzed based on the social, emotional,
and cultural connections of the participants using the journal en-
tries of the researcher and the notes found in the transcripts of
interviews and in the written narratives. All these were considered
to create a composite textural and structural descriptions.
From these textural and structural synthesis, the researcher
derived the comprehensive meaning of the experiences of the
participants also known as the essence of the phenomenon. The
lived experiences of the participants on how feedback affected
them positively and negatively and how practice aided them in im-
proving their public speaking ability were explained through the
themes and subthemes derived from their experiences.
Thorndike’s canonical study in 1913 is still applicable until this
time amidst the many educational reforms. The giving of feedback
to students makes them aware of their flaws and could improve
themselves if guided properly. Literature was also carefully stud-
ied to establish the link between the findings of the study, the
findings of other studies conducted, and the canonical study of
Thorndike in 1913 on giving of feedback.

Tools
The primary tools of the study were the researcher and the set
of semi-structured interview questions. Bahrami, Soleimani,
Yaghoobzadeh, and Ranjbar (2016) explain that the researcher
portrays an important role in qualitative research. The researcher
13
as an instrument works hard to understand and analyze the phe-
nomenon under study. According to Merriam (1988) the re-
searcher is the primary instrument of any study. The success of
any research depends on the researcher as he/she can process the
given data.
DeJonckheere and Vaughn (2018) state that semi-structured
questions are the most frequent data source in qualitative re-
search. The semi-structured interviews are powerful data source
to get the thoughts and experiences of the participants (DeJonck-
heere & Vaughn, 2018). In this study, the semi-structured ques-
tions were based on the problem questions and were validated by
two seasoned teacher-researcher from the province of Cavite (See
Appendix B). The semi-structured questions guided the researcher
to get thick description of the phenomenon. Other tools used
were the narratives of the participants who were interviewed.

Participants of the Study

There were 30 student-participants in this study who are high
school, senior high school, and college students from public and
private academic institutions in the Province of Cavite. The study
employed fishbowl sampling. There were ten high school student-
participants (five from private and five from public high school);
there were ten senior high school student-participants (five from
private and five from public senior high school); and there were
ten college students (five from private and five from state colleges
and universities). Twelve student-participants were interviewed
and were asked to write a narrative expressing their thoughts and
realizations about the study. The rest of the participants were part
of the focus group discussions. The participants were all officially
enrolled in the academic year 2019-2020.

Ethical Considerations
The following ethical issues were addressed:

14
 1. Permission was obtained from the heads of the different
academic institutions and request letters were given to the
participants through email and other social media plat-
forms (See Appendix A).
2. The participants were asked to voluntarily participate in the
study and the informed consent form were sent to each of
them as well with written permission from their parents as
they are still minors. It was explained to them in the letter
that their participation was voluntary and that they could
withdraw at any time during the duration of the study with-
out fear of penalty or prejudice.
3. The participants’ identity was treated with strict confiden-
tiality. Each one of them was assigned a pseudonym, and
any information about them was not included in the report-
ing of the data. All interviews and FGDs were carried out in
the place and time convenient to the participants.
4. Only the researcher has access to the data. All the data are
in composite form. Hence, no participant would be identi-
fied. The data gathered shall be for the sole purpose of the
study.
5. All participants were guaranteed of their safety. All the in-
formation which was disclosed by the participants would
not be used against them.
6. The safety of the researcher while the study was going on
and during the gathering of data was considered and en-
sured.

RESULTS
The following are the themes and subthemes that emerged
which answered the research questions of this study:
SOP 1. What are the positive and negative effects of feedback
to students’ learning ability?
Positive feedback has three subthemes namely: feedback helps;
feedback reminds; and feedback builds self-confidence.
15
 Negative feedback has two subthemes namely: feedback de-
moralizes and discourages self-esteem and feedback causes fear
and disrupts learning.
SOP 2. How does feedback affect the students’ ability to grasp
the needed competencies?
There are two themes that emerged: feedback could either
make or break the students and non-understanding of feedback
affects learning.
SOP 3. What kind of feedback would help students improve?
There are three themes that emerged: feedback should be kind;
feedback should be sincere; and feedback should build self-confi-
dence.
SOP 4. What is the role of feedback in the students’ learning
process?
There are three themes that emerged: to improve students’
performance and nurture students learning; to make feedback di-
rect and comprehensible to students; and to make students feel
empowered and not defeated.

DISCUSSIONS
The subsequent discussion presents the themes that emerged
from the study: positive feedback with three subthemes; negative
feedback with two subthemes; feedback could either make or
break the students; non-understanding of feedback affects learn-
ing; feedback should be kind; feedback should be sincere; feed-
back should build self-confidence; to improve students’ perfor-
mance and nurture students learning; to make feedback direct
and comprehensible to students and to make students feel em-
powered and not defeated.

16
SOP 1. What are the positive and negative effects of
feedback to students’ learning ability?
Positive effects of feedback. Giving feedback aids the learning
process of students. Thus, productive feedback motivates learners
to perform well. Positive feedback affirms the students and builds
their confidence (Al-Enzy & Jesudas, 2016; University of South Car-
olina, n.d.; Waring & Wong, 2009).
Feedback helps. Twenty-four out of 30 participants said that
immediate feedback allows them to correct their mistakes in their
minds right away. It helps them avoid committing their previous
mistakes. This view is reflected in the following answers of stu-
dents during the interview and FGD and some were from their
written narrative.
Feedback when given at once helps us avoid the previous mis-
takes.
Feedback even if it is negative or positive helps us a lot as I be-
lieve that bitter truth is better than sweet lies. The feedback
given if positive makes us happy and when it is negative makes
us pause and think at how we could improve our next perfor-
mance.
Feedback reminds. Students during the interview said that out-
right feedback makes them remember and avoid their mistakes.
When the feedback is given at once, you never forget.
Once the feedback is given after the activity, I will not forget it.
Feedback builds self-confidence. Student participants from
both public and private schools said that feedback builds self-con-
fidence. They are inspired by the thought that their performance
and abilities were observed and appreciated by the teacher. These
positive feelings boost their self-confidence. The participants said,
I feel so proud of myself because the teacher said that I pro-
nounce the words well and my voice is loud enough.

17
 I was overwhelmed and happy and I want to perform again be-
cause I am inspired because I know I am good.
I am very happy. Even the simple facial expression (was) seen by
the teacher, and she said it was good. I felt inspired and proud
of myself. I was afraid to talk before because I think I am not that
good but now I feel good about myself.
Negative effects of feedback. Negative feedback makes stu-
dents disengage. They lose their motivation to learn and would
just want to stop. Once this happens, learning and improvement
would be difficult to reach (Deci, 2013).
Feedback demoralizes and discourages self-esteem. Students
assert that negative feedback affects them negatively. They are
demoralized and discouraged. The feeling of wanting to cry and
the feeling of being humiliated were the worst feelings for them.
The participants said,
I feel like ... like ... I want to cry. I want to go home because I feel
... very shy.
I really felt sad after the negative feedback. I cried in the comfort
room. I feel like so small. It was humiliating like no appreciation
at all.
It was a very sad experience. I felt like I did not do anything at
all. It was bad, a very bad experience I will not forget.
I felt so low and useless. I was so ashamed of myself.
Feedback causes fear and stops learning. Students said that
negative feedback made them feel that they do not want to try
again as they felt that the succeeding performance would be an-
other failure. The feedback caused fear and destroyed the stu-
dents’ self-confidence. The participants said,
I felt so broken. It was not fair. I knew I did my best just that I
was nervous, and I was scolded. I was explaining my side, but I
am not given the chance. I do not want to try again.

18
 I want to cry at that time but at least I still managed to go out of
the room and go to the comfort room to cry really hard. I was
disappointed of what I did, and I feel so shy of my classmates.
Maybe if I have a choice, I won’t perform next time.
I felt like I want to drop the subject. I am afraid ... just afraid like
fear, like that.

SOP 2. How does feedback affect the students’ ability

to grasp the needed competencies?
Feedback could either make or break the students. The suc-
cess and improvement of students’ skills are affected by feedback.
Both negative and positive feedback affect students’ perfor-
mance. Negative feedback can break the students’ self-confidence
and self-esteem making them to disengage and quit learning dur-
ing the learning process. In contrast, positive feedback on the
other hand can build the students’ confidence and inspiring them
to go and try harder until they could perfect the craft (Al-Enzy &
Jesudas, 2016; Simon, 2013; Stenger, 2014; Wong & Waring,
2009).
The good feedback makes me … the positive feedback makes
me feel good about myself. It makes me feel better. The nega-
tive feedback makes me sick and feel bad about myself.
Positive feedback inspires me and boost my confidence while
the negative feedback makes me feel so low of myself that I do
not want to perform at all.
Well, positive feedback makes me feel confident to speak at the
front. It feels good when you hear good things about your per-
formance. Negative feedback makes me feel bad and like I said,
when I hear negative feedback, I like to drop the course already.
Non-comprehension of feedback has consequences in learn-
ing and motivation. It should be noted that students should be
able to understand the feedback given to them. It should be clear
enough so that they know how to improve their performance.

19
Comprehension of feedback is vital for students’ learning. Kui-
vamaki (2015) and Bloxham and Campbell (2010) averred that sec-
ond language learners are always thinking in two languages; this
explains the fact that Filipino students are thinking in Filipino be-
fore they translate their thinking to English. This affects their com-
prehension of any feedback given them. Thus, this translates to
the fact that some students may not be able to clearly compre-
hend the feedback given them. This non-comprehension may re-
sult to possible unimproved succeeding performance/s.
At times, I do not understand the feedback because ah ... uhm
... the ... the words are difficult to understand and ... and ... I am
shy to ask the teacher to explain. And ... and I receive negative
feedback again and again.

SOP 3. What kind of feedback would help students

improve?
Feedback should be kind. All the 30 student-respondents said
that the feedback should be given by the teachers in the kindest
way for them to appreciate.
Feedback should be sincere. Twenty-three out of thirty stu-
dents expressed great happiness when positive feedback is given
sincerely.
Feedback should build self-confidence. Twenty student partic-
ipants said that feedback builds their self-confidence when given
positively.
Feedback should be given sincerely for it creates great impact
upon the learners. Kind ways of giving feedback inspire students
and build them up. They are motivated to do well, and positivism
sets in. The mood in the classroom is affected as well. Students
are optimistic and are not afraid to commit mistakes, the ambi-
ance is light, and the learning is fluid (Al-Enzy & Jesudas, 2016; Si-
mons, 2013; Stenger, 2014; Wong & Waring, 2009). The partici-
pants said,

20
 When the feedback is so true that even our classmates will say
the same thing, it makes us happy. We will perform better next
time.
When the teacher gives kind feedback whether negative or pos-
itive, it inspires us to do better and perform better.
I become more confident because the teacher saw the effort I
put on the performance. And ah ... the classroom is better and
happy.
I want kind feedback. It feels good when you are not scolded. I
learn better when feedback is kind.
I like sincere feedback, not the fake one. I mean, ah ... the feed-
back that is deserving of my tasks or performance, like that. It
makes me feel good.
I am inspired to do better in the next presentation because I got
good feedback that made me feel encouraged.

SOP 4. What is the role of feedback in the students’

learning process?
To improve students’ performance and to nurture students
learning. The student-respondents emphasized the important
role of feedback in their learning process. They improve and bet-
ter their tasks when given prompt and appropriate feedback.
To make feedback direct and comprehensible to students. All
the 30 student-respondents expressed that feedback should be
clear and easily understood. The rubrics or criteria in rating them
must be thoroughly explained.
To make students feel empowered and not defeated. All the
respondents believes that the major role of feedback in the learn-
ing process is to empower them and not to make them feel de-
feated.
Feedback brings forth new information specifically related to
the task or process of learning that bridges the gap between what
is understood and what is planned to be understood. Feedback

21
plays an important role in the process of effective learning. It
guides the students as they progress in the learning process (Blox-
ham & Campbell, 2010; Gibbs & Simpson, 2004; Matthew, 2020).
The students said,
Feedback really helps us improve and learn.
If feedback is direct and easily understood, I can easily think of
ways on how I could improve my work.
Feedback should not squash the students and make them feel
defeated. The feedback should encourage and allow students to
feel empowered.

CONCLUSIONS
Studies conducted explain that feedback could help improve
students’ performance, likewise the findings of this study support
that feedback plays an important role in the learning process of
students. Thorndike’s law of effect is evident in this study that
when students receive positive, timely feedback, learning takes
place. According to Thorndike positive feedback strengthens
learning and could yield a habitual situation. It means that if stu-
dents are given the opportunity to understand the feedback and
they are guided well, learning becomes fluid.
This study identified the positive and negative effects of feed-
back, explained how feedback affected the students, enumerated
how feedback should be given from the perspective of students,
and pointed out the role of feedback in the students’ learning pro-
cess. But what was striking was the truth revealed by a participant
that feedback at times could be incomprehensible. The feedback
could not be understood at once which poses a cognitive chal-
lenge to students. The participants being Filipinos are thinking in
their native tongue even if they are in their classes which are car-
ried out in English. Feedback is given in English, and it takes time
for students to translate it to Filipino before comprehension takes
place.
22
 High school, senior high school, college/university students re-
gardless of whether they are in private, or government institution
clearly articulated that the feedback they receive affect their
learning process. The challenge now is for teachers to go the extra
mile to make sure that students clearly understood the feedback
given. It is also in the comprehension of feedback that learning
would effectively take place. The role of the teacher inside and
outside the classroom and the role of the students to exert extra
effort to improve themselves are both urgent. Teachers should re-
alize that students have a great capacity to improve themselves if
proper feedback coupled with respect, love and care would be
given. Immediate feedback must be delivered to help students
correct their mistakes at once.
Students of the present generation are open and willing to ac-
cept their mistakes and they can correct themselves at once as
well. They are learners with potential amount of confidence that
needs to be tapped and nurtured. The teachers’ role is not simply
to teach but to encourage and inspire. Teachers are not mere
mentors, but they must be the students’ parents in school capable
of bringing out the best in each of them.

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 APPENDICES

APPENDIX A

Letters seeking permission

Dear Sir/Madam:

Greetings in St. La Salle!

I am Evelyn R. Obo, a faculty of De La Salle University-Dasmarinas. I am currently

doing research related to giving of feedback to students and I would like to ask your
permission if I could conduct my data gathering in your school. My data gathering
includes interviews and focus group discussions with your (high school, senior high
school, college/university) students.
There are six academic institutions from the Province of Cavite, Philippines who
will be participating in this study. There will be ten high school student-participants
(five from private and five from public high school); there are ten senior high school
student-participants (five from private and five from public senior high school); and
there are ten college students (five from private and five from state colleges and
universities). Your school is chosen through fishbowl draw. I sincerely hope that you
could accommodate me on this. This is a great endeavor that will help me in my
progress as an educator. Be assured that you will be provided with a copy of the
finished research.
Attached to this is the questionnaire I intend to use during the interview and
focus group discussion with the students. Thank you in advance. I shall be willing to
come at any time to personally discuss this with you. I am giving my phone numbers
and email addresses for our easy communication.

Smart Number : 09202905568

Globe Number : 09168872333
Email Adds : erobo@dlsud.edu.ph

God bless and more power.

Respectfully,
Evelyn R. Obo

27
Letter to parents

Dear Sir/Madam:

Greetings in St. La Salle!

I am Evelyn R. Obo, a faculty of De La Salle University-Dasmarinas. I am

currently doing research related to giving of feedback to students and I
would like to ask your permission if you could allow your son/daughter to
be part of the study. Be assured that all data coming from your child shall
be treated in strict confidentiality. Your child’s identity shall not be dis-
closed, and you can terminate the participation of your child anytime during
the data gathering without prejudice to him/her.

Thank you very much.

God bless and more power.

Respectfully,
Evelyn R. Obo

28
APPENDIX B

Certificate of Validation

October 10, 2017

This is to certify that the research questionnaire prepared by Evelyn Obo for her

research titled, The Role of Feedback in the Learning Process of Students, has been

validated by the undersigned.

Glo C. Mendoza Ernani L. Elep

Validator Validator

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APPENDIX C

Interview Question Guide

Interview Questions

1. What are your experiences in receiving positive feedback?

2. What are your experiences in receiving negative feedback?

3. How does feedback, whether positive and negative, affect your

learning?

4. How do you think should feedback be given?

5. What is the role of feedback in the students’ learning process?

30