Peer Assessment
With the technique, Peer Assessment, students check (or ‘assess’) the performance of peers against clear criteria, offering feedback based on what they see or hear.
Why use this technique?
Often, there are limits to how many students you can observe and give feedback to in a lesson. Peer Assessment can help address this issue.
Self-Assessment can also help. However, it can sometimes be difficult for students to see or hear how they are doing themselves - they have ‘performance blindness’. Also, students sometimes lack the self-discipline they need to be as honest as they should in self-assessment. Peer Assessment can help address both these issues.
Notes and tips
To be most effective, students who are peer assessing need to be clear about the specific aspects of a performance they should be homing-in on to check. They also need to be clear about what success looks like. In other words, they need to have a good understanding of the success criteria for an activity.
Focused reflection
How well do you currently use this technique?
Is it a technique you will focus on developing?
If so, what are the key features you will focus on (things to do, and not do)?