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According to research (Peer-assessment & self-evaluation, n.d), peer-assessment is a

process that “involves sharing your work with your peers who offer feedback and suggestions

for improvement.” At UoPeople Peer Assessment is considered “a learning activity that

challenges you to apply critical thinking as you read and evaluate your peers’ assignment.”

(University of the People, 2020). The strategy of collaborative learning is embraced and

considered an essential part of developing students in preparation for real-life experiences.

Peer-assessment is one of the ways in which this collaborative learning experience is

achieved. The University hopes “to build a vibrant, international network and to share

information, wisdom, and support.” (University of the People, 2020). Peer-assessment at

UoPeople provides a platform for students to essentially educate each other through

providing insight and feedback to their fellow students, “by sharing thoughts, struggles,

concerns, ideas, criticisms and support, students can push their work further than they may

have been able to do alone.” (University of the People, 2020). The use of peer assessment at

UoPeople provides students with an avenue to access the views of fellow students and in the

process develop strong analytical skills.

Peer-assessment is largely beneficial to the students that are engaged in it. As students

are required to constantly engage in assessing their fellow classmates, their perspectives on

whatever subject is at the time being looked at are likely to develop. Peer-assessment

programs advocate for advanced involvement on the part of students and increased

responsibility in their education journey. Students are able to attain mutual benefits by

engaging in this constructive discussion with their fellow students in order to acquire and

provide a further understanding of a topic. Students, through peer-assessment, are able to

acquire skills that can be used in professional circuits. It is believed by some that the process

is a kind of simulation about how some real-life scenarios in the professional world may

occur. In a working environment, you may present a proposal to your directors regarding an
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innovative way to advance a certain activity at your organization. You will definitely need to

be able to have the know-how to receive criticism and engage in constructive discussions

with your fellow employees on the pros and cons of your idea. Peer-assessment is looked at

as a very good enhancer of those particular skills. Students at the end of a college-level

experience are required to have developed an acceptable level of reading and writing skills.

Peer-assessment directly emphasizes developing these skills on a constant plus repetitive

basis. This ensures a student always has to access and work on this skill set whose benefits

are essential for any student.

When giving feedback, a challenge observed is ensuring one's comments are

constructive and assist in the discussion at hand (REAP > PEER > Research, n.d.). Students

must try ensuring that whatever feedback is being provided is helpful to their peers and

provides them with more knowledge on the topic as well as a more dynamic perspective that

can be integrated with their understanding. Students must also guarantee a fair evaluation for

their peers. Students when receiving feedback must have a very open mind. Meaning students

must try to engage in their peers’ point of view and understand different perspectives of a

topic. Some assessments of a student's work may be wrong, misinterpreted, or generally

disagreeable with so students must have the temperament to go through these challenges.

Some students are not great in articulation, despite being able to understand the work in

which they are assessing, they are unable to provide a constructive comment which proves to

be a challenge.

When assessing a written assignment, my plan is to follow the given rubric. The

criteria to follow are clearly given to students and should act as a guiding tool in order to

provide constructive input to your fellow classmates. I plan on being fair and intuitive in my

assessment hoping to gain from my peers. Discussion assignments provide a platform for an
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engaging conversation between your peers on a given topic. I plan on giving fair evaluations

and assistance when or if needed.

References

Peer-assessment & self-evaluation. (n.d.). University of Wollongong. Retrieved April 21,

2021, from https://www.uow.edu.au/student/learning-co-op/assessments/evaluation/

REAP > PEER > Research. (n.d.). Re-Engineering Assessment Practices in Higher

Education. Retrieved April 21, 2021, from

https://www.reap.ac.uk/PEER/Research.aspx

University of the People. (2020, November 18). Collaborative And Peer to Peer Learning.

https://www.uopeople.edu/student-experience/quality/collaborative-peer-peer-

learning/