Effective Praise

Guidelines for effective teacher praise of students - and useful more generally

Effective praise:

is delivered contingently
specifies the particulars of the accomplishment
shows spontaneity, variety and other signs of credibility that suggest clear attention to the student's accomplishment
rewards attainment of specified performance criteria (which can include effort however)
provides information to students about their competence or the value of their accomplishments
orients students toward better appreciation of their own task-related behavior and thinking about problem solving
uses students' own prior accomplishments as the context for describing present accomplishments
is given in recognition of noteworthy effort or success at difficult (for this student) tasks
attributes success to effort and ability, implying that similar successes can be expected in the future
fosters endogenous attributions (students believe that they expend effort on the task because they enjoy the task and/or want to develop task-relevant skills)
focuses students' attention on their own task-relevant behavior
fosters appreciation of, and desirable attributions about, task-relevant behavior after the process is completed.

Ineffective praise:

is delivered randomly or unsystematically
is restricted to global positive reactions
shows a bland uniformity that suggests a conditioned response made with minimal attention
rewards mere participation, without consideration of performance processes or outcomes
provides no information at all or gives students information about their status
orients students toward comparing themselves with others and thinking about competing
uses the accomplishments of peers as the context for describing a student's present accomplishments
is given without regard to the effort expended or the meaning of the accomplishment (for this student)
attributes success to ability alone or to external factors such as luck or (easy) task difficulty
fosters exogenous attributions (students believe that they expend effort on the task for external reasons - to please the teacher, win a competition or reward, etc.)
focuses students' attention on the teacher as an external authority figure who is manipulating them
intrudes into the ongoing process, distracting attention from task-relevant behavior.

From Brophy, JE (1981) "Teacher praise: A functional analysis" in Review of Educational Research Spring 1981, pp5-32.

Last updated:16/5/07

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