Feedback
WWW and EBI feedback: what it means and how to write it well.
WWW stands for What Went Well and EBI stands for Even Better If. It is a two-part way of marking: tell the student what they did right, then give one specific thing to do next time. Used well, it fits on a few lines and gives a student something to act on in the next lesson.
What WWW and EBI stand for.
- WWW: What Went Well
- What the student did that earned marks, named specifically.
- EBI: Even Better If
- The next step, phrased as something the student can do next time.
What makes a good comment.
- 1. Name the skill or the mark
- "Good answer" gives the student nothing to repeat. "You gave the unit and the equation in your working" does.
- 2. Keep EBI to one action
- Three targets read as a list of failures. One target gets done.
- 3. Tie it to the mark scheme
- The student can see why the mark was lost, which makes the target believable.
- 4. Write it so the student can start immediately
- "Even better if you showed the substitution before the answer" can be acted on tonight.
Examples by subject.
These are examples of the style, written for this page.
- GCSE Physics
- WWW: You rearranged the equation correctly before substituting. EBI: Even better if you wrote the unit on every line of your working.
- GCSE Chemistry
- WWW: You balanced the equation and gave state symbols. EBI: Even better if you stated the mole ratio before calculating.
- GCSE Biology
- WWW: You linked the change in enzyme activity to the shape of the active site. EBI: Even better if you named the type of bond that breaks at high temperature.
- GCSE Maths
- WWW: Your method for the ratio problem was fully correct. EBI: Even better if you checked the final answer against the original quantity.
- A-level Physics
- WWW: You identified the correct model for the circuit. EBI: Even better if you stated the assumption behind it.
Why writing them takes so long.
For a class of thirty, tailored comments on each paper take hours, and teachers often drift towards generic lines to get through the pile. The structure is fine. The time is the problem.
How GradeDrive produces them.
When GradeDrive marks a script, it also writes three WWW points and three EBI points for that student, based on their actual answers. They go on a feedback sheet that you can print and attach to the script, or share. You can review everything before it goes out, and edit anything you would phrase differently.
Questions people ask.
- What does WWW and EBI stand for?
- WWW stands for What Went Well and EBI stands for Even Better If. You will sometimes see it written as one word, WWWEBI, meaning the same thing.
- Is EBI the same as a target?
- Close. An EBI is a target written as a sentence about the piece of work in front of the student.
- How many WWW and EBI points should a student get?
- Enough to be read and used. A short list of WWW points and one clear EBI is easier to act on than a long one.
- Can WWW and EBI feedback be generated automatically?
- With GradeDrive, yes. Each marked script gets a feedback sheet with WWW and EBI points that you can review, edit and print.