The Effects of Peer Review Interactions on Korean College Students’ Writing

Abstract

The present study investigated the types of peer reviews and revisions by Korean EFL college students on their writing, and described students’ perception towards peer review. It comprised of a sample of twelve college students joined in this peer review and revision process through surveys and in-depth interviews. The results demonstrate that the participants’ peer review paid more attention to addition and positive praise, and their revisions focused on corrections, additions, and no revision. Based on the holistic and analytic scoring results, it indicates that the peer review activity did not reach the expected increase in writing quality. However, participants increased in C-test scores and vocabulary, and employed many writing strategies from their peers. After the peer review process, the participants recognized that the peer review interaction helped them improve their learning: how to share ideas, organize their writing, compare different thoughts of peers, read each other’s writings, and find out their own strengths and weaknesses. The results showed that the participants became more positive towards writing in English because they became less anxious in writing as they repeatedly engaged in the peer review process.