Feedback in learning
There is a very strong case, both theoretical and empirical, for saying that feedback plays a huge role in learning.
Feedback closes the learning loop. Learning isn’t just exposure to new material; it’s about making adjustments. Feedback provides information on what is correct, what is incorrect, and what needs improvement. Without feedback, learners risk reinforcing mistakes or misconceptions. With feedback, they can recalibrate their understanding.
According to cognitive load theory, learners often can’t see their own errors because working memory is overloaded. Feedback externalizes the evaluation process, reducing mental load. Research in formative assessment shows that immediate, specific feedback can significantly accelerate mastery compared to practice without feedback.
Feedback is a key ingredient in building self-regulated learners, people who monitor their own progress and adjust strategies. Constructive feedback can increase motivation, reinforcing effort (e.g., ‘You’re on the right track’) or persistence (e.g., ‘You’ve improved in this area’).
On the flip side, poorly delivered feedback can discourage learners, so the quality and tone of feedback matter as much as its presence.
In fields like music, sports, or medicine, feedback is essential for deliberate practice (Ericsson’s theory of expertise). Experts improve not by mindless repetition, but by receiving targeted feedback and refining performance. Feedback highlights the ‘gap’ between current performance and the desired standard, making learning goal-oriented.
From a neuroscience perspective, feedback creates reward signals in the brain. Corrective feedback helps rewire neural pathways by reinforcing the right associations. Positive reinforcement strengthens motivation, while error-based feedback triggers deeper cognitive processing: we often remember mistakes more vividly when corrected.
There is practical evidence in classrooms and workplaces. Meta-analyses in education (e.g., John Hattie’s Visible Learning) rank feedback among the highest-impact factors on student achievement. In professional training, ongoing feedback loops are central to performance reviews, mentorship, and continuous improvement systems.
Feedback is not an optional “add-on.” It is a core mechanism that drives correction, motivation, and growth. Without it, learning risks becoming slower, less accurate, and less sustainable.
In the social and political arena, feedback tells us what works and what does not. Hayek said that societies that stress the value of family, property and which allow for choice, survive preferentially over ones that do not. We look at what people have tried, and gain feedback from their successes and failures. Churchill, paraphrasing Santayana, said, "Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it." We learn from our mistakes.
Madsen Pirie