An investment that pays off: empowering students for the business of peer response.

Abstract

This study investigates the theory, research, and methodology of peer response groups in the English and composition classroom and offers a method of using writing groups. It addresses the problem of the gap between theory and practice with peer response by tracing the use of writing groups back to colonial America and illustrating the overwhelming support for peer response in current and past research. Surprisingly, a large percentage of instructors still teach the traditional way with the teacher as an audience of one. Most teachers who have tried and failed at using peer response groups report similar problems with the collaborative method. They argue that it takes too much time, yields few substantial content-based comments that can be useful for revision, and leads to noisy, chaotic classrooms. Additionally, some teachers are uncomfortable straying far from the teacher-centered, traditional method of instruction. For whatever reason, too many teachers do not allow student writers to collaborate during the writing process, and, therefore, students often have a poor sense of audience and are inadequately prepared to collaborate on writing projects in business after they graduate. Some students also have difficulty with response groups, at least initially. They feel insecure about their own writing skills, unqualified to critique someone else's work, and afraid to hurt other people's feelings. A method of peer response is described that is the result of a two-year study using response groups in the composition classroom. Major emphasis is placed on community-building and an initial training program. Workshops span two days with students responding at home to other members' papers on copies of the papers themselves, rather than on teacher generated response guidelines. Class time is reserved for peer editing (day one) and discussion of the writing (day two). This method trains students to begin the process of talking effectively about writing. It allows them time to give thought to the specific comments we expect them to make, and to note their feedback in a form that is accessible to the writer at the time of revision. Empowering students to be successful responders leads to a program where readers and writers can come together and create meaning.