Post 345: Why is Peer Review considered 'Authentic Writing'?

Post 345: Why is Peer Review considered 'Authentic Writing'?

Authenticity in writing is when we ask our students to write in their own voices to audiences outside of the classroom, for a real-world purpose. In other words, when students write in their own voices to an audience outside the teacher, then this is considered 'real writing'.

Scott Warnock feels the peer review exercise is the most authentic writing students do in his writing class. Scott placed his class in online peer review groups. Each peer reviewer had to not only peer review another students' paper, but they also had to account for all the previous students' peer review comments as well.  He likes to put 4 people to a group. "Regardless of modality (online or onsite), the peer reviews may be the most real writing students do in class. Writing to a real audience for a unique purpose to help another student's writing improve..is not only of value to the reviewee, but to the reviewer as well." (Warnock,77)

When students peer review each other's papers, then other students become the audience. Students are peer reviewing for the real purpose of helping others.  When they peer review online, they are 'publishing' their peer review for others to read on the net.

My students love the peer review exercises because they get to interact with each other and they are writing for a real purpose--that is the purpose of helping to improve other student papers.  Students who post their rough drafts early in the week gets the most feedback reviewers because the earlier the student posts, the more time other students have to give feedback.

Students who post later in the week get fewer reviewers and get less benefit from the peer review exercise forum. So, I recommend online teachers to tell their students to post as early as they can and to tell students their rough drafts do not have to be perfect. Even if they just have one paragraph, it is better to post something, than nothing at all. 

Sometimes students who post late are shy and are afraid their rough drafts are not 'good enough' for posting. I tell these students that they are all in the same boat with the other students that there is no such thing as 'not good enough' during the peer review phase of the writing process.  Once I convince the reluctant students to post, they are surprised at how many benefits they get when their rough draft gets feedback and commentaries from their peers and from me. 

When students write to an audience other than the teacher and are writing for a real purpose, this is considered 'authentic' writing.  I have taught many English writing classes using the Peer editing forum as the main forum activity in the writing class with much success!