Balancing Academic Feedback and Pastoral Support in Teaching
As an Associate Lecturer at Central Saint Martins, I often face the challenge of balancing academic feedback with the need for pastoral support in a short tutorial. Due to the nature of the role, I rarely have full access to detailed student background information, such as Individual Support Arrangements (ISA) or personal challenges, until after initial interactions. This lack of prior information makes it difficult to fully understand the creative and emotional needs of students. Additionally, the time constraints, usually limited to 12-15 minutes per student, often make it challenging to address both creative guidance and emotional concerns effectively in the same session.
The time limitations and lack of comprehensive student background information complicate my ability to provide holistic feedback. When students disclose emotional challenges, a significant portion of the brief time is often spent listening and offering initial emotional support. As a result, this leaves little time for detailed creative feedback or assessment of the student’s creative process and progress. This imbalance can affect students’ ability to fully engage with their creative work and hinder their development of technical and conceptual skills in their artistic practice.
While I am aware of students’ emotional and mental health needs, particularly after disclosures of personal challenges, my role does not extend to offering pastoral care directly. Instead, I find that the need for emotional support, which may not always be fully addressed in the short session, impacts the overall quality of feedback I can provide. Hattie and Timperley (2007) assert that “feedback is most effective when it is timely and specific to the learner’s needs.” However, in this context, emotional needs take precedence, which delays or limits the opportunity for in-depth creative feedback that would help students refine their concepts and further their development as artists.
To improve the situation, I would advocate for
-Better communication and information sharing regarding students’ ISAs before the session. This would allow me to plan more effectively, providing creative feedback while being mindful of any emotional challenges that may affect their engagement.
-Extending session times would provide the space needed to balance creative feedback with attention to students’ emotional needs. As Brookfield (2017) highlights, “Effective feedback is not just about responding to the content of students’ work but also engaging with their emotional and psychological needs.”
-Peer support structures could help alleviate some of the emotional pressure placed on me as an instructor, fostering a collaborative approach among faculty, we could provide more consistent support to students. Cuseo (2009) in Bamber & Jones (2013) suggests that “university education needs to be holistic, addressing emotional, social, and intellectual development,” underscoring the importance of addressing both creative and emotional needs in a balanced manner.
While my role does not involve providing direct pastoral care, I recognize that students’ emotional challenges can impact their ability to engage fully with their creative outputs.
By attempting to influence
– implementing better communication regarding student needs,
-extending session times,
– creating support structures for both students and educators,
I can more effectively balance the creative feedback with awareness of emotional concerns.
References
Bamber, J & Jones , R. (2015) ‘Challenging students: Enabling inclusive learning’ (Accessed 8/2/25)
Brookfield, S. D. (2017). “Becoming a critically reflective teacher”. Jossey-Bass.
Cuseo, J. (2009). “The student learning imperative: An integrated approach to learning and teaching, in Bamber, J. & Jones, R. (2013), “Enhancing Learning and Teaching in Higher Education: A Framework for Institutional Change” (pp. 157-171). Routledge.
Hattie, J., & Timperley, H. (2007). “The power of feedback”. Review of Educational Research, 77(1), 81–112.