Unlocking Progress with Verbal Feedback: Why Teacher Scripts Matter

At Learning Loft, we know that feedback is the single most powerful driver of progress in the classroom. The problem? Teachers are under constant time pressure, and while written feedback has value, it’s often delayed, workload-heavy, and inconsistent.

That’s why more and more schools are turning to verbal feedback — and why we’ve built Learning Loft to provide ready-made teacher scripts that make feedback sharper, faster, and more impactful.

Why Verbal Feedback Matters

Research highlights the huge impact of effective feedback: the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) (EEF) suggests it can add up to seven months of progress over a year.

Unlike written comments, verbal feedback is:

• Immediate – acted on in the moment.

• Dialogic – a two-way conversation, not a one-way note.

• Sustainable – it reduces workload compared to extensive marking.

• Modelling-rich – students hear how experts think.

But the challenge is consistency. Too often, verbal feedback sounds like: “Add more detail” or “Check your grammar” — vague prompts that don’t help students move forward.

Enter Teacher Scripts

This is where Learning Loft comes in. Our scripted feedback resources give teachers ready-to-use prompts that:

• Turn vague advice into actionable guidance.

• Ensure consistency across lessons, teachers, and departments.

• Tie feedback directly to success criteria and exam skills.

• Save time while maximising impact.

For example, instead of saying:

“This needs more analysis.”

Our scripted feedback suggests:

“You’ve made a point. Now extend it by linking back to the theme. Start with: This shows that…”

That’s feedback a student can act on immediately.

The Research Behind Our Approach

We don’t just provide scripts — we ground them in evidence-based practice.

• TeacherToolkit & UCL Verbal Feedback Project: Their report shows that structured verbal feedback reduces workload and benefits disadvantaged learners.

• Voice 21: Oracy in Action: Their impact evaluation demonstrates that structured classroom talk improves attainment and confidence, particularly when teachers use consistent frameworks like their Oracy Benchmarks.

• EEF: Their Teaching & Learning Toolkit reinforces that feedback (especially verbal) can drive significant gains — but only when students are given time and structure to act on it.

Learning Loft brings this research to life by equipping teachers with ready-to-use scripts they can apply immediately in class, in mock exam reviews, or in whole-class feedback sessions.

Practical Examples

With Learning Loft, teachers access subject-specific feedback scripts, such as:

English

• “Good evidence. Now link it to the theme. Start with: This suggests that…”

• “You’ve explained the point — now zoom in on one word. What does it imply?”

Science

• “You’ve described what happens. Can you now explain why? Use because.”

• “That’s the process. Now link it to the keyword from today’s lesson.”

Maths

• “The method is clear. What’s the final step? Think about your operation.”

• “Double-check your units. Does the answer fit the context?”

How Learning Loft Helps Schools

• For teachers: Access all scripts for just £14.99 per month.

• For schools: Bring consistency and clarity to feedback across departments with whole-school packages starting at £699.

Our resources cover:✅ Lesson scripts for consistent questioning and feedback.✅ Pre- and post-mock exam feedback frameworks.✅ Whole-class feedback templates.✅ Ready-made sentence stems to scaffold student responses.

Final Thought

Verbal feedback is powerful — but only when it’s clear, consistent, and actionable. At Learning Loft, we take the research from EEF, UCL, and Voice 21 and turn it into practical, ready-to-use tools that save teachers time and boost student outcomes.

Because when teachers have the right words, students make the right progress.

👉 Explore Learning Loft today — and transform feedback in your classroom.

🌐 www.learningloft.co.uk