Peer review is a process in which students consider or evaluate the quality of a piece of work produced by their fellow students and provide each other with feedback. In this program, this process involves two students being partnered up and reviewing each other’s essay drafts. Each student will provide their partner with written and verbal feedback, as well as a completed marking rubric and grade. After this activity, each student will write an individual reflection on this process. Reflective writing as a piece of assessment is a way of asking students to critically evaluate and make connections between literature and concepts they are engaging with and its application. In this instance, students are reflecting on the peer review process: • how it affected (or not) their understanding of what constitutes a sound academic essay • how receiving feedback from a peer differs (or not) to receiving feedback from a tutor • how they will apply (or not) what they have learnt to the submission of the final essay • how their experience relates (or not) to the literature regarding peer review and peer assessment Reflective writing is not just a description or summary of something that you have observed. Instead, reflective writing requires you to describe, interpret and evaluate. Students are advised to use the DIEP model we have employed in Foundation Studies as a structural model for this task: • Describe objectively what happened • Interpret the events • Evaluate what you learned • Plan how this learning will be applied As reflective writing is more personal than other forms of academic writing, the use of the personal pronoun ‘I’ is acceptable – and encouraged. This written reflective task has a word count of 500 words and students will be assessed on: • The articulation of how the process of peer review has affected their understanding of what constitutes a sound academic essay. • The depth of their reflection and articulation of how they will apply what they have learnt to the final version of their essay. • The critical reflection on, and application of, the relevant literature on student peer assessment. • The quality of the written communication, following appropriate academic conventions (including use of appropriate APA 7 referencing guidelines).
