Even as adults committed to careers in education, the words “peer review” may yet bring a shudder. No doubt we all had negative experiences with peer review—both as students and professors! But as educators we recognize the enormous value in peer review and we persevere, determined to reap the rewards we know exist in the process. Before I share some of the peer review strategies we use in the School of Business and Management, I want to share my favorite story about peer review.
In 1997, I was teaching writing at Colorado School of Mines, an elite engineering school in Golden. Taking a writing course was deemed a terrible waste of time by many of these students who possessed amazing skills in math and science. I had students who detested writing and hated only one thing more: peer review. One student in particular grumbled, moaned, complained, shuffled, and snorted when it was time for peer review. However, these students were also grade junkies, so no one was going to skip class even if I was going to subject them to these horrors.
The day for peer review arrived. Teams were established, guidelines reviewed, and papers circulated. Grumbling Student sat at a table with his group, chin to chest, ball cap pulled tight, reading his peer’s paper. I kept an eye on him and was delighted when he sat up in his chair, head lifted. He looked around the room, the hint of a smile on his face, and began completing his peer review form.
I was surprised and terribly curious. The class drew to a close and Grumbling Student came up to turn in his review. I said, "Looks like you had a good experience with the process! Do you think peer review has some value after all?" He smiled large and said, "Peer review is great! I thought I was the worst writer in the class and now I know I'm not!"
Now, of course that is not the purpose of peer review. However, often students do think their writing skill is far below or far above that of their peers. Often peer review lets us know where we are in the scheme of things. Many studies support the use of peer review for improving student writing. What many students and faculty don't realize, though, is how the process of reviewing a peer's paper improves the student’s own writing. Much of the value in this process is via what the students learn about themselves and their own composition skills by reviewing the work of others. It often brings to light weaknesses in the student’s own work, which they can then remedy.
Peer Review in the School of Business and Management
Students in Kaplan’s School of Business and Management graduate programs have the opportunity to complete a Business Communications course. The class is designed to introduce students to concepts of business communications, some they are familiar with and others that may be new. Despite the high percentage of students who are working professionals, a surprising number of students have not participated in a peer review environment, offering and receiving feedback on their writing. And while many express trepidation at the prospect of offering guidance to their peers, the vast majority of students comment at the end of the course that the experience is both valuable and rewarding.
The first peer review assignment students are given in GB 512, Business Communications, is a “safe” review. In Unit 1 of the course, students write a request for funding memo in which they request that their employer scholarship their participation in a business writing course being offered in their community. In the 350-word memo students justify the benefits of a business writing course to their supervisor, outlining the course outcomes, cost, and how the student will manage the time to complete the class. Students submit the assignment at the end of Unit 1. In Unit 2, students post their memos to the Discussion Board Peer Review. They then review memos written by their peers and offer the following: three strengths, three weaknesses, three suggestions for improvement. It’s “safe” because the assignment has already been submitted for a grade, so the reviews are supplements to the feedback the students will receive from the professor. Much of the value comes in becoming comfortable with the peer review process itself and in students being able to see how others managed the same assignment.
The next opportunity students have to complete a peer review is with the rough draft of the course researched proposal. Students are placed in teams in the order in which they post their rough drafts to the discussion forum. This is an excellent strategy for team formation as it means students do not get a team assignment until they have a draft ready for review. I provide a set of specific questions for students to respond to in the review process as this helps direct their efforts. Students review the papers of two peers. We do one final peer review of the PowerPoint presentation in the last unit. Students may choose which PowerPoint they wish to review.
I share with students that one of the most challenging things we are asked to do in our lives, both academically and professionally, is to critique the work of others. What I am asking them to do in the peer review forums is just that: provide one another with useful, tangible, practical advice. I urge students to consider what they would like to hear from their peers and respond to their peers’ work accordingly. While a "good job" here and there can be encouraging, it's not terribly helpful. I encourage students to provide specifics—what won't work in the idea, what grammatical problems exist, what issues will your peer encounter pursuing a specific topic?
The process of peer review is integral to business writing and a significant factor in publishing success for educators in the field of business. Recognition among one’s peers is a valued credential both individually and for institutions as a whole. Educators in business and management see the value of the peer review process in their own careers and often incorporate peer critiques into their classrooms to support the feedback process among their students. Often the emphasis is placed on the value of peer review to the recipient of the input—the person whose writing is being reviewed. And while the writer does receive valuable insight into his or her own writing, an equally powerful outcome of peer review is the insight gained by the student conducting the peer review.
Did you know…
Catherine Flynn was born in Canada and became a citizen of the United States in January 2009? We’re glad to have you on this side of the border, Catherine! Catherine is a Composition Professor in the School of Business and Management at Kaplan University.
[This article was originally published in our September, 2009 issue.]
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