It happens in every department. A lecturer spends twenty minutes on each essay, filling the margins with comments. The student looks at the grade on the last page, skims a few lines in red and closes the file. Next term the same lecturer writes nearly the same comments for the same student. Nobody is lazy; the feedback simply never reaches the next assignment.
Written feedback is one of the few personalised sources of information you get at university. This article gives a concrete routine for turning comments into change: how to read them, sort them, record them and what to ask your tutor.
Why feedback so often goes nowhere
- The grade eclipses the comments. A high mark makes reading feel unnecessary; a low one means reading in a bad mood.
- Feedback arrives after the module ends. With no more assignments in that course, it seems pointless.
- Comments are short and vague. “Needs more analysis” or “argument unclear” is true but hard to act on.
- There is nowhere to keep it. Comments are scattered across dozens of files, so nobody sees the pattern.
Read feedback in three passes
- The emotional pass. Read it once, accept that it may sting, and leave it for at least a day. Do not analyse while annoyed.
- The understanding pass. Reread each comment alongside the passage it refers to. Write next to it, in your own words, what the marker wanted you to do differently right there.
- The extraction pass. For each comment, ask: is this only about this essay, or about every essay I will write?
Separate the two kinds of comment
This is the most important step. Most comments fall into one of two types:
| Type | Examples | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Task-specific | “There is more recent data than this 2015 source”, “Paragraph 3 misreads theory X” | Fix the specific knowledge; no need to carry it forward |
| Transferable | “Topic sentences don’t state a claim”, “Lots of quotation, little commentary”, “Conclusion repeats the introduction” | Record it in your feedback log and turn it into a checklist item for next time |
Praise falls into the same two types. “The comparison of the two schools of thought is sharp” is as useful as criticism: it tells you what you did right, so you can repeat it on purpose rather than by accident.
The second type is the real asset. A comment like “lots of quotation, little commentary” will reappear in other modules from other markers until you change the underlying habit.
Translate vague comments into actions
| Common comment | What it usually means | What to do next time |
|---|---|---|
| Lacks analysis | Sources are described but their significance for your argument is not explained | After every citation, add at least one sentence beginning “This suggests…” |
| Argument unclear | No single sentence states the main claim in the introduction | Write your thesis as one sentence before drafting |
| Loose structure | Paragraphs do not connect; their order could be shuffled unnoticed | Outline using topic sentences only and read them in sequence |
| Too descriptive | Retelling content instead of evaluating it | Every paragraph needs a claim someone could disagree with |
| Doesn’t answer the question | Writing about the general topic, not the specific task | Underline the command word (compare, evaluate, explain) and check each paragraph does it |
Keep a feedback log
A feedback log is a simple table collecting transferable comments from every module. Each row holds the date, the module, the comment verbatim, the comment translated into an action, and a column for “fixed in which assignment”.
After three or four assignments, a few comments will repeat. Those are your two or three core weaknesses, and they deserve more effort than all the one-off remarks combined. Before submitting anything new, reread exactly those rows and check your draft against each one.
Asking your tutor questions that help
Office hours are the best place to clarify feedback, but only if you prepare:
- Bring the essay with two or three comments marked that you do not fully understand.
- Ask about improvement, not the grade. “If I rewrote this paragraph, what would make it analytical?” works far better than “Why did I only get this mark?”.
- Ask to see an example or rewrite a paragraph on the spot and ask for a quick reaction.
- Close with a summary: “So in the next essay I’ll focus on…”, to confirm you both mean the same thing.
In practice: a 40-minute routine after every returned assignment
- Day you receive it: read it once and do nothing else.
- Next day, 20 minutes: reread alongside each passage, restate comments in your own words, sort them into the two types.
- 10 minutes: move transferable comments into your feedback log, translated into actions using the table above.
- 10 minutes: rewrite the most heavily criticised paragraph in line with what you now understand. Keep it as your own model.
- Before the next assignment: reread the three most repeated rows in your log and use them as a checklist when editing your draft.
Rewriting one paragraph is the step most often skipped and the most useful: it turns “I know that” into “I can do that”.
Open the most heavily commented essay from last term right now, sort its comments into the two types, and copy the transferable ones into the first rows of your feedback log. Your next essay will be the first one corrected before the marker ever sees it.
Câu hỏi thường gặp
What should I do first when I get a low mark and harsh comments?
Read it once, then leave it for a day before analysing it. The first emotional reaction makes comments read like personal criticism, when most of them are technical guidance you can act on.
What does “lacks analysis” mean on an essay?
Usually that the essay describes or summarises sources without explaining why they matter, how they support your argument or where they fall short. If unsure, take one specific paragraph to your tutor and ask them to show you what is missing.
Should I ask my lecturer about my grade?
Asking how to improve is worthwhile; asking for extra marks rarely works. Prepare two or three specific questions about comments you do not understand, with the relevant passages marked.
What is a feedback log and how do I keep one?
It is a file or notebook collecting comments from all your assignments, grouped by type such as argument, structure, use of sources and presentation. When the same comment appears across modules, it is a genuine weakness to prioritise.
What if different lecturers give contradictory feedback?
Look for the common thread, since comments often point to the same problem in different words. Where requirements genuinely differ, such as style or formatting, follow the guidance for that module and marker.
