Peer feedback: the learning element of peer assessment

By N. Liu, D. Carless. 2006

1,075 citations recorded by the source corpus.

This paper focuses on peer feedback in relation to assessment processes. It examines the rationale for peer feedback, emphasizing its potential for enhanced student learning. We draw on relevant literature to argue that the dominance of peer assessment processes using grades can undermine the potential of peer feedback for improving student learning. The paper throws further light on the issue by drawing on a large-scale questionnaire survey of tertiary students (1740) and academics (460) in Hong Kong, supplemented by interview data. The findings indicate that a significant number of academics and students resist peer assessment using grades and that the majority report that students never or rarely grade each other in assessment activities. This paper explores why there is resistance, in particular, by academics to peer assessment and argues the case for a peer feedback process as an end in itself or as a precursor to peer assessment involving the awarding of marks. It also recommends some strategies for promoting peer feedback, through engaging students with criteria and for embedding peer involvement within normal course processes.

Subfields: Education

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/c52f7f5f2062f33aa7f445acdd4fa5965c6caa27

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In Education

Citations in the corpus

‘Only true friends could be cruelly honest’: cognitive scaffolding and social-affective support in teacher feedback literacy (2017, methodology): “While peer feedback is often used interchangeably with peer assessment or peer review, it is denoted as a formative assessment activity that focuses on qualitative comments (liu and Carless 2006).”
What makes for effective feedback: staff and student perspectives (2019, background): “Evaluative judgement, peer feedback, exemplars and feedback moderation are concepts or practices that are regarded as holding merit by researchers (Liu and Carless 2006; Carless and Chan 2016; Broadbent, Panadero, and Boud 2018; Tai et al. forthcoming), but either weren’t noticed, experienced or…”
Peer feedback on academic writing: undergraduate students’ peer feedback role, peer feedback perceptions and essay performance (2018, result): “On the other hand, the current study’s findings are in line with prior research by Schunn and colleagues (e.g. Cho, Schunn, and Wilson 2006).”
The effects of gender on group work process and achievement: an analysis through self‐ and peer‐assessment (2014, background): “Using peer-assessment for summative purposes within a working group bears the possibility of inhibiting cooperation (Boud et al., 1999), which may in some cases lead to a reluctance by academics and students to include it in the grading process (Liu & Carless, 2006; Nicol & Macfarlane-Dick, 2006).”
Academics’ perceptions of the benefits and challenges of self and peer assessment in higher education (2018, background): “While time constraints were found in both the literature and our data, reliability of student judgement skills, perceived expertise and power relations outlined in Liu and Carless (2006) were not mentioned in the same way by our academics.”
Giving or receiving feedback: which is more beneficial to students’ learning? (2018, neutral): “The ‘learning element of peer-assessment’ is represented by peer feedback (Liu and Carless 2006, 1).”
Peer review in higher education: Student perceptions before and after participation (2014, background): “Peer review is closely related to self-review or self-assessment and encourages students to take an active, reflective role in learning, which promotes advanced critical thinking and higher-order cognitive skills (Liu and Carless, 2006; Topping, 1998).”
Student perspectives on formative peer assessment: an attempt to deepen learning? (2009, methodology): “Consequently in developing any peer assessment strategy, Elwood ( 2006 ) and Liu and Carless ( 2006 ) suggest due consideration needs to be taken in accounting for the diversity of student learning styles that need to be accommodated in which some will prefer more directed rather than self‐directed ”
Reciprocal peer coaching and its use as a formative assessment strategy for first‐year students (2010, background): “For Liu and Carless ( 2006 ), the term ‘peer assessment’ should only be used when peers are employed to give each other grades, regardless of whether comments are also provided, as opposed to ‘peer feedback’, where a dialogue is entered into with regard to progress towards standards.”
How does student peer review influence perceptions, engagement and academic outcomes? A case study (2014, background): “…peer review are those that facilitate a student’s own learning and are critical for lifelong learning (Dochy, Segers, and Sluijsmans 1999; Boud 2000; Liu and Carless 2006), including reflecting on work, critical thinking, high-order cognitive skills, and negotiation and diplomacy skills (Topping…”
Students’ perceptions about peer assessment for writing: their origin and impact on revision work (2011, background): “However, studies have also highlighted students’ discomfort with peer assessment and their reservations about its fairness and accuracy (Cheng and Warren 1997; Davies 2000; Liu and Carless 2006; Rushton et al. 1993; Smith et al. 2002).”
Anonymity as an instructional scaffold in peer assessment: its effects on peer feedback quality and evolution in students’ perceptions about peer assessment skills (2018, result): “This study also confirms earlier findings that practice is an important component in peer assessment implementations (Gielen and De Wever 2015; Liu and Carless 2006).”
Does peer assessment promote student learning? A meta-analysis (2020, background): “First, in regard to rating format, there is concern that providing only scores may not be the best way to improve student learning (Liu and Carless 2006), because scores are considered summative and comments are considered formative.”
Quality of Feedback in Higher Education: A Review of Literature (2020, background): “This potential is highly disputed with indications that staff are likely to reject peer feedback models due to a lack of reliability, a lack of expertise, power struggle concerns, and a lack of time [48].”
The development of science activities via on-line peer assessment: the role of scientific epistemological views (2009, result): “Similar to the assertion made by Liu and Carless (2006) , this study hypothesized that one of the major sources for their progression came from peer feedback.”