By going through this cycle repeatedly, you gradually learn how to do performances well. Hopefully, in the process, you learn how to master whatever it is you are trying to learn. Various studies confirm that this method works well, especially if the feedback is unambiguous and occurs soon after the performance. The Classical school of Behaviorism held that all animal and human behavior was constructed out of such learned components, much as all ordinary matter is made of atoms. For example, in teaching reading, one might begin with assembling words in a system like Phonics , and then learn how to use words as basic building blocks of sentences, thus looking and saying the words in a Whole Language approach.
Positive reinforcement appears to be more effective than negative reinforcement.
There are several things to observe about the feedback rationale for grades. The first thing to observe is that the grade is not an personal evaluation, nor a reward. It is merely an evaluation of a performance. It is very difficult to look at a grade objectively, but that is the best way to approach a grade. Grades are imperfect things, and you must interpret them carefully.