THE EFFECT OF TEACHERS EVALUATIVE FEEDBACK ON CHINESE STUDENTS PERCEPTION OF ABILITY - A CULTURAL AND SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS

The research explored the effect of teachers' evaluative feedback on s tudents' perception of ability. The subjects were 758 Chinese students from elementary schools, high schools, and a university in Hong Kong. Subjects rated ability and effort of two hypothetical students who ac hieved identical results (success or failure) in a mathematics test bu t received different feedback (praise, blame, or neutral feedback) fro m the teacher. They also rated the teacher's perception of their own a nd their friends' ability and effort in a similar situation after a re al mathematics test. The results of this study support previous findin gs which indicate that ability perception is influenced by cultural an d contextual variables. Contrary to the findings with Western students , ability and effort were positively correlated. The importance of eff ort among the Chinese students appears to mitigate the effects of teac hers' feedback on students' ability. Age-related differences were also observed. The results are discussed in terms of sociocultural backgro und of the subjects.