EFL teachers’ feedback practices : A qualitative study of how lower-secondary teachers in Sweden adapt feedback to students’ proficiency levels and learner profiles

This study investigates how two experienced lower-secondary English teachers in Sweden conceive of and use feedback as part of their professional practice, with a particular focus on how such feedback is influenced by students’ individual differences highlighted by Ellis (2012). Data were collected from semi-structured interviews through convenience sampling of two experienced EFL teachers in Sweden. Both manifest and latent analyses were conducted to capture not only how the teachers described their stated feedback practices but also the underlying values implied by their reasoning behind them. The study is theoretically grounded in Lövlie’s Praxis Triangle (1974, in Sundberg, 2022), which highlights the interplay between curriculum interpretation and research/theory-based, practice-based, and ethically based considerations. Findings indicate that feedback is often adapted based on prior knowledge of a student’s proficiency level, with higher-achieving students receiving more detailed, implicit, or challenging feedback, while lower-performing students receive more supportive and simplified guidance. Other individual differences, including personality traits, age, emotional needs, and neurodiversity, also shape feedback practices, though typically in an intuitive rather than systematic manner. Time constraints were found to be a key limiting factor in delivering individualized feedback. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of EFL feedback practices and highlights the importance of reflective, context-sensitive approaches to supporting diverse learners in the classroom.