Picture it: you study, you train, you work very hard, and then—no feedback. Or vague, lackluster feedback. Will this be of any help to you? Although a select few might find this sort of feedback strengthening, most would not. An effective learning system motivates the learner, and if praise and constructive criticism in feedback don’t boost you to keep moving forward, money aside, what will?

A successful learning system necessitates corrective feedback. If given a choice between immediate and delayed, delayed feedback is better, because it produces a favorable spacing effect. “On the job” support works as feedback, maybe even more impressively than after the work has been finished. Feedback is tricky: extra praise or help can actually prove disadvantageous in the learning system. How do you handle it?