Peer editing can be very helpful to classmates for improving their writing. A peer is someone who is your age, and editing means critiquing to revise one's work. Peer editing can be useful when done properly or ineffective and sometimes even hurtful when done incorrectly. It is important to consider how you would feel if you were receiving the comments of correction that you will be giving to someone else. The outcome of peer editing should not be to make someone feel dumb or inadequate, instead it should encourage and challenge your peer to become a better writer.
As stated in What is Peer Editing? and Peer Edit With Perfection Tutorial, "compliments, suggestions, and corrections are the three main steps of peer editing." When giving a compliment, it is important to be positive. Suggestions should be specific on what could be changed such as word choice, details, etc. Finally, instruct your peer of corrections in punctuation, grammar, sentence structure, or spelling that need to be made. The end result of peer editing should be meaningful feedback that is useful for enhancing one's writing.
I agree that it is important to consider how you would feel if you were being critiqued. You are not going to want to take harsh criticism from anyone on something that you have worked hard on and looking at it from that point of view will make you think twice before saying something negative.
ReplyDeleteYou did a really good job! I enjoyed reading this and you did and excellent job on explaining peer helping.
ReplyDelete"...inadequate, instead it should…" Better: ...inadequate. Instead it should…"
ReplyDeleteThoughtful, interesting.
i agree that suggestions should be specific, and not broad leaving the student clueless on what to fix!
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