The Art of Helping Your Students Help Themselves Peer Editing: The Art of Helping Your Students Help Themselves

Why Peer Edit?

Why Peer Edit? Positive impact on editor’s writing

Why Peer Edit? Positive impact on editor’s writing Positive impact on writer’s writing

Why Peer Edit? Positive impact on editor’s writing Positive impact on writer’s writing Positive impact on instructor

Varieties of Peer Editing Techniques

Classic Peer Editing Author reads text to group Group comments orally or in writing

Silent Editing Students use editing guide to edit peer essays Students give written comments to author

Booklet Editing Teacher collects “finished” essays and makes a booklet Each student receives a copy of booklet Students peer edit each essay Students disassemble booklet and return essays to their authors

“Slice and Dice” Instructor makes and distributes copies of each student’s essay Students check papers at home Next day, students form groups to discuss papers Concurrently, instructor and writer have a conference in hall to discuss instructor comments

“Slice and Dice” Teacher and author listen to the different groups’ observations Author takes notes on comments and receives student’s annotated copies Author revises text

Colored Pencils/Highlighters Students are divided into groups Each student is given a different colored pencil or highlighter to concentrate on some aspect of the paper Student marks areas of concern A key to the meaning of the different colors is given to the students Marked essays are returned to author for revision

Post Teacher Check Instructor marks problem areas in essay Students meet in small groups to identify problems and discuss solutions

Computer Editing Students work in pairs They edit each other’s papers using a word processing program This can also be done by e-mail

Teaching Students to Peer Edit

Modeling Peer Editing Give students a model text - can be a student or teacher generated sample Walk the students through the process Make a transparency of a volunteer student’s paper and correct together

Peer editing in L2 Classroom and Applications to L1 Instruction

Must design peer editing process to further target language developmental goals

ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines - Writing (See handout)

Examples of Peer Editing Worksheets

Use this list to check over your paper before your conference.                                                          Name of Writer______________________  Title of Project________________________ Peer Editor__________________________  Date______________________________   Use this list to check over your paper before your conference. Mark the column for each item with a  after you have checked the paper carefully. Writer Peer Editor Checked for:   I followed directions. I read the paper to my partner for understanding. I checked the paper for complete sentences. I used correct grammar. I have spelled all Word Wall Words correctly. All sentences start with a capital letter. Proper nouns are capitalized. Each sentence ends with a proper end mark. Commas and quotation marks are used correctly. I indented the beginning of each paragraph. I followed the writing process. My name is on the paper.  

Peer Group Response form Writer’s Name ___________________ Thesis Statement: (a.k.a. main idea, controlling statement) (Write in a complete sentence.) What I like in this essay: What questions I have about this essay: (Discuss here areas that are confusing, that do not seem related, or that need further explanation.) The suggestions I have for the writer of this essay: Signature of Listener _____________________________ (Be as specific as possible, and write as clearly as you can. Use the back of this paper if you need more room. Give to writer after discussing the comments in your group.)

How to Evaluate Peer Editing

PEER EDITING EVALUATION Score each of your editors from 0 to 4, 4 being highest Name of editor: Your name : Quantity Quality   Written comments Discussion in class   Additional comments you would like to make about the editor: David Landis, U of Wisconsin

Rubric for Grading a Peer Editing Task Absent Barely Fair Good Great 0 1 2 3 4 The Editor: ______________________________________________________________ Supplies detailed comments to help the author Provides at least one positive comment Thoroughly checks mechanical elements

Common Pitfalls and Solutions

Problem Students feel that they should rely on the authority of the teacher, therefore they think their input is not valuable

Solution Talk to students about the value of practice. Instructors learned to edit by editing. Assure students that they will also receive instructor feedback

Problem Some students may not offer adequate feedback to peers

Solution Have multiple students review each composition so that there is a greater chance that each student will receive valuable feedback. Grade peer editing process and be sure that students realize that their performance in this process will be evaluated

Problem Students tend to mistrust peer comments

Solution Assure students that it is relatively rare that a peer will propose a change to something that is right, making it wrong Let students know that they are ultimately responsible for the text Be available to consult with students who question peer comments

Problem L2 students may try to not use target language while engaging in peer editing activities

Solution Use silent editing technique If possible, create groups of students where they must use target language as a lingua franca

Conclusion “These reviews offer students reactions from real readers who provide multiple, often mutually reinforcing, perspectives. Such reviews help student writers develop audience awareness.” Robin C. Scarcella Rebecca Oxford