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One of the ways in which learners are able to
engage with the quality of their work is by evaluating the work
of their peers. However, if they are to offer helpful feedback,
learners must have a clear understanding of what they are to look
for in their peers' work. The teacher must explain expectations
clearly to them before they begin.
One way to make sure learners understand this
type of assessment is to give them a practice session with it. The
teacher provides a sample of a learner's work. As a group, learners
determine what should be assessed and how criteria for the task
should be defined. Learners assess this using the criteria they
have developed, and determine how to convey feedback clearly to
the fictitious learner.
Learners will also benefit from using rubrics
or checklists to guide their assessments. At first these can be
provided by the teacher; once the learners have more experience,
they can develop them themselves.
For peer evaluation to work effectively, the learning
environment in the classroom must be supportive. Learners must feel
comfortable and trust one another in order to provide honest and
constructive feedback. Teachers who use group work and peer assessment
frequently can help learners develop trust by forming them into
small groups early on and having them work in the same groups throughout
the term. This allows them to become more comfortable with each
other and leads to better peer feedback. Peer assessment is an important
part of formative assessment that should take place, especially
in group work where it becomes a way in which the group assesses
itself.
Things to consider
- In order to peer assess effectively learners
need to be taught the skills;
- Peer assessment can suffer from "friendship
factors", especially if marks are involved - friends may
get an inflated assessment and some peers may even suffer discrimiation;
- Using of multiple assessors is likely to improve
the assessment process, by improving consistency;
- Gender and culture will affect the way in which
students assess each other
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