It's Perfect - Don't Change Anything

I am torn when it comes to the use of peer review in the classroom. Many of the benefits that this article discusses are the same arguments that I use to defend my use of peer review in the classroom. On the other hand, many of the questions that the article raises are also very present in my own mind as I continue to use peer review in the classroom. The study done by Brammer and Rees seems to only further my confusion over the issue. Their findings seem to be aligned with the turmoil that I am already facing.
I feel very strongly that peer review can have a positive impact on the writing of students. I think that it can be a great benefit to students to have someone else read their material. Everyone can benefit from sharing their work with an outsider who is able to evaluate our work. When I use peer review, I stress to students that is is more than just an exercise in finding mistakes in the mechanics and grammar of a piece. The peer reviewer can look at the arguments being made in a piece. They can give feedback to the author as to the clarity and completeness of the arguments being presented. The peer reviewer can also evaluate the level of support that has been provided by the author. They can point out areas of the paper that may be weaker than others. They can help us see our work from a different point of view. There are plenty of benefits that come along with a quality peer review.
The phrase, “quality peer review,” is where my struggle is rooted. No matter how much time I spend working with students on the correct way to reviewer someone’s work, I always end up with just a surface level evaluation. Most of the marks made, if there are any made at all, are marks dealing with spelling or punctuation. There is very little discussion of the organization of a work. Most students fail to point out any areas of weakness in their peers work. They miss the point of the exercise. Part of this is due to the fact that they don’t see much purpose in the activity. They see it as a waste of time, as many of the students in the study reported. If students don’t take the exercise seriously, there is no point. Students may also struggle to evaluate another’s work because they don’t feel confident in their own writing. If they struggle to write, how can they possibly look at someone else’s work and make suggestions?

Brammer and Rees offer a suggestion that may solve this problem. They suggest that peer review becomes a part of each step of the writing process. By incorporating peer review into the early stages, prewriting and brainstorming, it gains more value with the writer. This solution also means that students would be spending more time doing peer reviews. This extended exposure to the process can increase a student’s level of comfort with it.