Peer assessment of language proficiency

This article describes part of an investigation into the reliability and potential benefits of incorporating peer assessment into English language programmes. Undergraduate Engineering students attending a university in Hong Kong were asked to assess the English language proficiency of their peers among other assessment criteria, such as preparation, content, organisation and delivery as exhibited in the seminar, oral presentation and written report of an integrated group project. The article compares the students’ attitudes towards assessing both the English language proficiency and other aspects of the performance of their peers. It also compares peer and teacher assessments. The findings suggest that students had a less positive attitude towards assessing their peers’ language proficiency, but they did not score their peers’ language proficiency very differently from the other assessment criteria. Students and teachers were different in their respective marking behaviours and the ways oral and written language proficiency were interpreted. While students derived benefits from the peer assessment exercise, a question mark hangs over incorporating peer assessment for both language proficiency and the other criteria into the regular assessment process until such differences are resolved. Suggestions are made for improvement in procedures and future research.

[1]  Mrudula Patri,et al.  The influence of peer feedback on self- and peer-assessment of oral skills , 2002 .

[2]  W. Cheng,et al.  Having second thoughts: Student perceptions before and after a peer assessment exercise , 1997 .

[3]  K. Oldfield,et al.  Peer and Self‐assessment at Tertiary Level ‐‐ an experiential report , 1995 .

[4]  K. Topping Peer Assessment Between Students in Colleges and Universities , 1998 .

[5]  Mark Freeman,et al.  Peer Assessment by Groups of Group Work , 1995 .

[6]  Liz Hamp-Lyons,et al.  Assessing the Portfolio: Principles for Practice, Theory, and Research , 2000 .

[7]  Ian Tudor,et al.  Learner-centredness as language education , 1996 .

[8]  Nathan B. Jones Business Writing, Chinese Students, and Communicative Language Teaching. , 1995 .

[9]  Kam-por Kwan,et al.  Tutor Versus Peer Group Assessment of Student Performance in a Simulation Training Exercise , 1996 .

[10]  N. Caulk,et al.  Comparing Teacher and Student Responses to Written Work , 1994 .

[11]  Shirley Earl,et al.  STAFF AND PEER ASSESSMENT ‐ MEASURING AN INDIVIDUAL'S CONTRIBUTION TO GROUP PERFORMANCE , 1986 .

[12]  Dennie Rothschild,et al.  Self and Peer Evaluation of Writing in the Interactive ESL Classroom: An Exploratory Study , 1990 .

[13]  Eira Williams,et al.  STUDENT ATTITUDES TOWARDS APPROACHES TO LEARNING AND ASSESSMENT , 1992 .

[14]  David Kember,et al.  Peer Assessment of an Individual ‘s Contribution to a Group Project , 1993 .

[15]  K. Mangelsdorf,et al.  Peer reviews in the ESL composition classroom: What do the students think? , 1992 .

[16]  Cathy Bakewell,et al.  Learning without Doing , 1995 .

[17]  George Jacobs First experiences with peer feedback on compositions: Student and teacher reaction , 1987 .

[18]  Karen E. Johnson,et al.  Peer Review Negotiations: Revision Activities in ESL Writing Instruction , 1994 .

[19]  G. Jacobs Miscorrection in Peer Feedback in Writing Class , 1989 .

[20]  Abd El-Rahman,et al.  Improving the quality of student learning , 2003 .

[21]  David Boud,et al.  Enhancing learning through self assessment , 1995 .

[22]  Nancy Falchikov,et al.  Group Process Analysis: Self and Peer Assessment of Working Together in a Group , 1993 .

[23]  N. Falchikov Peer Feedback Marking: Developing Peer Assessment , 1995 .

[24]  Pat Hogan Peer Editing Helps Students Improve Written Products. , 1984 .

[25]  Judy Goldfinch,et al.  DEVELOPMENT OF A PEER ASSESSMENT TECHNIQUE FOR OBTAINING INDIVIDUAL MARKS ON A GROUP PROJECT , 1990 .

[26]  Judy Goldfinch,et al.  Further Developments in Peer Assessment of Group Projects , 1994 .

[27]  David Boud,et al.  THE ROLE OF SELF‐ASSESSMENT IN STUDENT GRADING , 1989 .

[28]  N. Webb Group Collaboration in Assessment: Multiple Objectives, Processes, and Outcomes , 1995 .

[29]  A. Jafarpur Can naive EFL learners estimate their own proficiency , 1991 .

[30]  Raymond Devenney How ESL Teachers and Peers Evaluate and Respond to Student Writing , 1989 .

[31]  W. Burnett,et al.  Peer Assessment by Fifth Year Students of Surgery. , 1980 .

[32]  Wanda Sharplin,et al.  Peer Evaluation Enhances Students' Critical Judgment. , 1986 .

[33]  James H. Bell Using Peer Response Groups in ESL Writing Classes , 1991 .

[34]  Thomas Newkirk Direction and Misdirection in Peer Response. , 1984 .