As a former K12 English Language Arts educator, this blog is both an apology and a love letter to former students. How so? As I write this, I am reminded of me as a much younger, much less experienced classroom educator. I apologize for asking for revisions that amounted to nothing more than a “sloppy copy” and a “neat copy.” This may be a decent starting point, but this blog presents proof that it is possible to learn and grow; the Peer Review and Feedback instructional resource pack provides resources for educators and students who may have varying levels of experience with this process.
Writing–whether as a student or adult–is a complex process that requires the right mix of solitude and community. This is especially true for younger writers as they seek to find a voice and hone their craft. While many stages of writing can be both profoundly difficult and profoundly satisfying, seeking and receiving feedback can be one of the more challenging aspects of the writing process, no matter the skill level of the writer.
Why is this a common problem for both adult and student writers? Obviously the process is complex. When writers process their thoughts and begin to put them on the page, there’s definitely a satisfaction to be found, yet who hasn’t felt frustration as well when attempting to perfect their thoughts? Peer review and feedback are critical steps when completing any project so why does it elicit such dread from teachers and students?
In this blog post, we'll explore the challenges associated with peer review and feedback head-on and uncover strategies to transform them into powerful tools for development and collaboration, paving the way for a transformative writing experience.
How do time constraints impact the quality of peer review and feedback?
Lack of time can lead to less time devoted to review and feedback.
Time is often at a premium and may lead to less time devoted to this stage of the writing process. Educators may skimp on both ends of this process: at the beginning when students should learn what quality feedback is and be taught how to give and receive it, and also later in the process when they apply that knowledge to their peers’ projects. It is important to note that good feedback encourages multiple revisions and drafts and doesn’t just happen between the “sloppy copy” and the “neat copy.”
Solution: Invest time in teaching feedback
First, time is always an issue in the classroom. Few of us have adequate time to feel as if we’ve done enough to aid students. Take. The. Time. Time is a commodity like any other. Invest time in teaching students the why, what, and how of timely, actionable feedback, and their comfort and skill will grow as a result. Time used in this way will benefit students in both the long and short term, as well as helping educators.
The good news is that there are tools and resources that are available to help teachers and students do this more effectively. Modeling is definitely a friend when it comes to feedback. Use an essay that already has a rubric score to save the time of culling student examples and ensuring the writer is anonymous. Search for a topic that is sure to be a hit with students, or use one of these exemplar essays that already has a rubric score and annotations, divided by genre and grade level. Not only has a lot of the work already been established, there are discussion points regarding what kind of feedback to give and what/how the writer can do in response to that feedback.
Move on from whole class discussions to providing essays with feedback to students in small groups and have them evaluate the intent and purpose of the specific feedback examples and how a writer could/should respond to that feedback. Make sure that students come back to the whole group to discuss and reinforce best practices.
These activities are lengthy in terms of laying the foundation for giving and receiving feedback. Too often we skimp on these important foundational skills and then wonder why students don’t understand how or even why it’s important. Teaching students how to give feedback to one another increases their independence and skill level as writers because examining others’ work helps them to critically evaluate their own. Ultimately, this increase in student skill and confidence will lead to less demand for only the educator’s feedback as they learn to trust in the writer’s community being created.
How can a lack of knowledge result in poor peer review and feedback?
Too often our students aren’t strong enough writers to feel confident in giving any but the most superficial feedback. They may stray into the area of proofreading or editing for errors due to a lack of understanding of an assignment, writing skills, or a clear purpose for the feedback cycle. Many times students are handed a checklist and given free rein to read and review; and why not? These are far simpler and measurable ways to approach text, unlike quality feedback. There is nothing wrong with a good checklist to keep peer reviewers focused, but the specificity of a rubric is more likely to determine the quality of feedback. If all that is required of students is a proofreading task or asking/answering yes or no questions without an opportunity to reflect, then the quality of feedback will suffer.
Solution: Teach and model effective responses
Step one: Understanding the writing skills required to complete the assignment is necessary for both the educator and the student. Taking the time to identify and then teach discrete skills that allow students to experience their own expertise is key. No checklist or rubric can help a student who lacks the requisite skills. The educator’s expectations for feedback must be explicit, and they must be taught to students. Starting with one key writing skill, modeling it, and allowing students to learn without penalty at this stage is necessary. Educators should expect to provide feedback on their students’ feedback!
Step two: Acknowledging that modeling feedback skills may not necessarily mean that students can do this work immediately. Superficial understanding leads to superficial feedback. Writers should have an explicit direction to take as a result of feedback. Ideally, this should include “Where to Next?” feedback, which identifies an issue related to the writing task, relevance to the stated expectations of the assignment, and specific action(s) to guide the student in their “next steps.” This takes understanding and a commitment on the part of the educator, who may be a novice in providing this type of feedback. Still, one of the best ways to learn something deeply and meaningfully is application; in this case, teaching these skills to students as a regular element of the feedback loop is key to developing the educator’s own understanding.
How do educator comfort and skills lead to disconnects in the peer review and feedback process?
Lack of comfort on the part of educators who may not possess the needed skills themselves can lead to a disconnect and devaluation of the process.
Often–although not always–providing actionable feedback isn’t taught explicitly due to the teacher’s discomfort with the process. It is uncomfortable and difficult to teach what is unfamiliar. Some teachers aren’t trained in best practices for teaching writing and so may not have the information or skills to share with others. Inherent in this process is the recursive feedback cycle. Often this is reduced to a list of items where little critical skill is required and possibly worse, just being a cheerleader who isn’t offering constructive, actionable feedback.
As a young student, I was often the victim of non-helpful feedback; marks like awk or comma splice were liberally sprinkled over my written offerings. If I had known what that meant, I wouldn’t have included all 20 comma splices! And sadly, I wasn’t comfortable asking.
Solution: Embrace feedback loops for deeper learning
The good news is that there is good practice in how to give and receive feedback. It requires some change in educator and student practice, but it’s there! As with so many changes, it requires a shift in thinking that must be acknowledged, embraced, and practiced. It is far too easy to write pithy little comments because they are A) easier to write and B) sometimes it seems that students only look at the grade and not the feedback.
Two things of note: first, one of the biggest issues with what I mentioned above is that if the feedback is given with a grade, it’s too late to apply the feedback! There is no opportunity for change and therefore it quite literally is of little use to the student. Two, feedback loops are absolutely needed. Feedback must be formative in nature in order to have an impact and absolutely must be paired with the opportunity to revise and submit again. But receiving feedback and revising and submitting isn’t quite the loop I’m envisioning. A student response needs to be more than just a resubmission with a few modifications. A feedback loop may include that type of response, but it is also an opportunity for dialogue wherein students can ask for clarification and further input from the educator.
Open, trusting communication involves active participation with a willingness to both offer something and to receive it as well as a willingness to suspend ego and work hard to improve.
How does a lack of confidence in peers hinder the peer review and feedback process?
Lack of confidence in peers leads to seeking feedback from the educator(s) in the classroom only.
Too often students are savvy enough to recognize that much of the feedback they receive from peers isn’t going to help them improve their writing skills as well as that of the educator. Educators can only do so much so it isn’t feasible to expect that the educator can provide timely feedback on multiple drafts for multiple students. In addition, no one likes hearing or reading what they have failed to do well. Too often reviewers are either not knowledgeable enough to help the writer, or often the tone is too harsh and appears more critical than helpful.
Solution: Model, practice, and build confidence in peers
It seems inevitable that when educators assign peer review, there will be several students who only want feedback from the “real” expert in the room: the one who is assigning grades at the end. If only they can suss out what that educator wants, they can maybe deliver it and have that high mark to prove it! This transition will take time and patience and lots of practice from all participants.
Establish clear expectations and practice, practice, practice.
1. Model for them what it looks like–and show what it doesn’t look like.
2. Model for them how to give and receive feedback because there’s an art to both sides of this transaction.
3. Model for them how to give feedback on the strengths of the assignment, as well as the weak areas.
4. Model for them how to respond to feedback.
Start with small, yet important revisions and help students to become the experts that they need.
What are the benefits of a student checklist in peer review and feedback?
Checklists are the gateway to revision and editing, right? Checklists have advantages and disadvantages as do all tools. That last part is important enough to repeat: a checklist is a tool. Many tools are ineffective when used incorrectly or in the wrong context. A checklist has a place in this process, but it’s only a part, not the whole. And its usefulness is dependent on what’s included in it. Checklists can offer a way to complete the task so it should be focused, able to be implemented at multiple times during the feedback cycle, and should require more of a response than a yes/no or a check mark. And, yes, this takes time too.
Overview: Centering peer review and feedback
The challenges are obvious to experienced educators, but even when the solutions are as clear as the challenges, often time constraints make it difficult to implement effective and impactful peer review and feedback. The bottom line is that we, as educators, need to work with students to improve their skills and confidence in themselves and each other when offering and receiving feedback. Centering students in this process and helping them develop the skill set necessary to offer timely feedback is essential in knowing how to look critically at their own writing.