UNI STU 84 | Summer 2015
Peer Review
Writer’s Name:
____________________________________________________
Reviewer’s Name: ____________________________________________________
Purpose of the activity: Apart from providing helpful feedback to a colleague, peer review can play an important role in
developing your own writing skills. Seeing a peer’s writing may help you recognize the strengths and weaknesses of your
own writing. It may also help develop your ability to think more critically about your writing. Even professional writers
use peer review.
Part I:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Trade papers with your partner.
Reread the prompt so you know what to be looking for in your partner’s paper.
Both you and your partner will read each other’s papers silently.
While you are reading your partner’s paper, fill out the questions in part II of this worksheet. Feel free to mark
minimally on your partner’s paper.
5. After reading each other’s essays and completing the questions in part II, you and your partner will discuss the
responses on the handouts.
6. Lastly, submit the draft of your essay along with your peer review handout to the instructor so that you receive
credit for this assignment. Your instructor will return the peer review worksheet and paper draft back to you in a
later class meeting.
Part II:
1) Does the writer include a hook, explanation of the topic, and relevant background information in their
introduction? If “no” on any of these, write in what’s missing below.
2) What is the writer’s thesis? Write it in the space below. Does it effectively respond to the prompt? Why or why
not?
3) What are the main ideas the author uses to support the thesis? Does each topic sentence relate clearly to the
writer’s thesis? If not, indicate this to your partner and list the topic sentence(s) below.
4) Do topic sentences capture the controlling idea or “gist” of each paragraph? Underline any topic sentences that
do not, and list an example below.
UNI STU 84 | Summer 2015
5) Does the writer include specific examples to develop their ideas in each body paragraph? Are their examples
related to their argument, or do they seem off-topic? If no, provide an example of a paragraph that is either
missing an example, or wherein the example seems off topic.
6) Does the writer offer analysis in each body paragraph that relates their example(s) back to their main argument?
If no, highlight any examples of an incomplete paragraph (by writing the word “analysis” next to them) and write
the last sentence of one of these paragraphs below.
7) In the conclusion, does the writer restate the argument and explain why the ideas in the essay should matter to
the reader in general?
8) Is the writer’s essay clearly organized? Is it easy to follow? Why or why not?
9) Is the essay at least one page long and include the necessary information (name, instructor’s name, due date,
and title) in the heading?
10) Does the use effective transitions to explain relationships between paragraphs and ideas? If no, highlight an
example of an ineffective transition (by writing the word “transition” next to it) and write it below.
11) Provide a positive comment AND a suggestion for your peer’s paper.