Undergraduate peer review, reading and writing: reflecting on experiences from an International Politics module

Abstract

From academic years 2011–2012 until 2015–2016 (inclusive), the authors developed an innovative formative peer review assessment strategy to build undergraduate students’ academic writing skills within the framework of a second year introductory International Politics module. This involved students anonymously reviewing assigned fellow students’ draft essay introductions and indicative bibliographies, supported by a bespoke rubric delivered via Turnitin Peermark. This article recounts the educational research-driven rationale underpinning the peer review educational design and implementation in the International Politics module, before qualitatively exploring its perception and reception by learners through key “student voice” data, complemented by commentary from learner focus groups. Following the best traditions of learning and teaching articles in this journal, we conclude by sharing the challenges and benefits of implementing such a formative assessment strategy. We also offer practice-based advice, drawn from our experiences, for colleagues who may want to emulate our approach, and we acknowledge the limitations of our qualitative practice-based study alongside a potential avenue for expanding on this study.