What is the goal of responding effectively to student errors?

The goal of Responding Effectively to Student Errors is to provide teachers with a model for correcting all types of student errors during academic learning activities. 

What are the features of effective error correction?

An effective error correction procedure has three important features. First, it provides the student exact information about how they made a mistake. Second, effective error corrections will provide the student with a model of how they can complete the task correctly. Finally, effective corrections provide sufficient practice for the student to relearn the skill they are having problems with. 

Why is responding effectively to student errors an important part of teaching?

As you know, students with learning problems make many errors in learning, particularly when learning new, difficult material. An effective error correction strategy is a teaching strategy that will help students overcome initial learning problems in the most efficient way. 

How do I use error correction strategies during instruction?

How we respond to student errors is critical because if we utilize an effective model we can make our re teaching of a critical skill. Research has shown that correcting a student's error can be most efficiently done using a three-step correction sequence.

Step  1: Ask a  student to stop responding as soon as he or she makes an academic error. Stopping a student immediately is important because the student will better understand what type of learning error they made if the error is pointed out immediately.

Step 2: Tell the student what exactly the error was. For example if, during multiplication fact practice, a  student says, "5 x 5 = 30" , the teacher should point out the mistake immediately.
 
Step 3: Model the part of the strategy that the student missed at least twice immediately      following the student's error. For example, if a student makes an error reading a word (e.g.  the student says tap for tape), the teacher should model the correct reading of the word and then provide a model of the correct strategy for reading the word. So, using the example above:

 • The student reads tap for tape
 • The teacher says no, this word is tape. What word is this? The student responds "tape."
 • Then the teacher provides the student a strategy correction, "Watch me . There is an e a t the end of the word so I say the name of the vowel. The name of the vowel is a so the word is tape."  Step 4: The teacher tests the students on the word they previously missed, ( e.g. tape). The teacher now asks the student that same series of questions whether there is an e at the end of the  word to test the student's understanding of the reading strategy (in this case,  testing the student  if he/she can apply the rule that if there is an e at the end of the word you say the name of the vowel)

Step 5: The teacher presents sufficient practice of the rule application. Usually students will  need at least three to four practice examples before they will fully understand the cause of their error and how to apply a learning strategy correctly. Using the example discussed above, a set of words that would serve as practice words for the student to read from a list written on the board is:

gripe  made
grip   mad

References

Kameenui,E., & Simmons, D (1990). Designing instructional strategies. Merrill, Columbus, Ohio 

Carnine, D., Kameenui,E., & Silbert, J (1995). Direct instruction math. Prentice Hall, Columbus, Ohio.