Kevin D. Washburn has written an excellent post at The Edurati Review titled Learning from Mistakes Takes the Right Feedback.
Here’s a short excerpt from it, but it’s really worth a visit and a “full read”:
“Dr. Robert Brooks (2007) suggests couching feedback in “we” statements. For example, rather than telling a student that a response is incorrect and to “try harder,” Brooks suggests, in one-on-one conversation, saying, “This strategy you’re using doesn’t seem to be working. Let’s figure out why and how we can change the strategy so that you are successful.” Such a response invites a careful investigation of the mistake and makes the interaction a problem-solving experience. A classroom environment that welcomes error as a gateway to learning contributes to better feedback responses.”
ABsoLUTEly.
Also when dealing with fossilized errors saying things like: we didn’t really undo this problem before -what was our approach? Hmm, perhaps we went about it the wrong way, what do you think would help us fix this one for good?