Teaching Writing in First-Year Seminars

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One way for instructors to move beyond assigning writing to teaching writing is to allow students to read and discuss each other's writing in peer-review workshops. As you create writing assignments, plan for peer review. As suggested in the discussion on assignment writing, preparing peer review guides along with the assignment sheet itself will allow both to work together to promote the same goals.

Peer Review Why

Peer-review workshops serve many useful functions for student writers, most notably:

• They provide writers with real readers who must make sense of the writing.
• They help writers improve their reading/critical analysis skills.
• They, most obviously, help writers improve their writing skills and final products.

Peer Review How

Use the strategies and sample worksheets provided through the following links to help your students get the most out of peer review.

• Specifying tasks
• Sequencing tasks
• Modeling how to use workshop criteria
• Modeling effective commenting
• Modeling how to handle divergent advice
• Thinking about logistics
• Providing adequate time
• Building in incentives for helpful comments
• Handout for effective peer review