Peer response in the basic writing classroom

• Main Author: McCauley, Amy R.
• Other Authors: Hanson, Linda K.
• Format: Others
• Published: 2011
• Subjects: English language > Composition and exercises > Study and teaching (Higher); Peer teaching
• Online Access: http://cardinalscholar.bsu.edu/handle/handle/187632; http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1265087

This study describes the conversations that emerged during structured and unstructured peer response sessions in a basic writing classroom. The evidence suggests that the students were more likely to discuss both global and local issues in their writing when their teacher provided them with a structured set of questions to answer during response sessions. Additionally, the degree to which the students internalized these structured patterns of response and transferred them to the unstructured writing workshop sessions varied significantly among groups of students. While some students used the guided response questions to build beneficial writing-reading relationships with their peers and learn new methods for responding to writing, others kept the structured and unstructured response sessions almost entirely separate. These results raise questions regarding how students' sense of ownership over their own writing and motivation to participate in a community of writers affect the degree to which they internalize the patterns of response that are encouraged by their teacher during structured peer response sessions. === Department of English