Engagement & Honesty: Peer Editing With GAFE in One Class with Multiple Sections

For some reason it never crossed my mind until now. Usually, for me, peer editing happens with students in the same class. I've been thinking about partnering with the 10th grade English students so they can review 7th and 8th grade writing samples but it hasn't happened yet. I find that the MS students are always a bit uncomfortable in front of a new peer audience. This is useful for them and in the end, they are responsive to another set of eyes reviewing their writing.

This week, instead of pairing students in the same class, I connected them with their peers in a different section of the same class. I chose the pairings for the students in the morning section. They used a google form to 'assess' the essay using only two standards measuring organization and focus. Students were allowed to make comments and suggestions in the doc based on content and conventions but their task was to stick to the standards, which some found challenging. Here's what I found:

1. ENGAGEMENT: When the students in the first section found out they could check out submissions from the 'other' class, they attacked. This surprised me. When the afternoon section arrived after lunch and realized their friends had made comments in their essays, the afternoon students couldn't wait to return the favor! I rolled with this allowing the afternoon students to choose which paper they were going to review. I approved only IF the pairing was going to be effective. The enjoyed the task and approached it with a seriousness I didn't expect.

2. HONESTY: The feedback was more honest than I've seen in past editing sessions. Because there was 'distance' between peer reviewers, they felt comfortable letting loose...with purpose. Overall, I'm happy with the improvement I've seen in how these 8th graders deliver feedback, it's becoming more concise.

The takeaway for me? I'll peer edit with as many different eyeballs, whenever possible!