| Summary: | This study explored the value of peer response groups
with second language students learning writing. It was
conducted in a small university college with 12
international students from Asia, most of whom were in
Canada to improve their English in order to enroll in
university and college programs.
The study specifically investigated a) the perceptions
of students with regard to peer response b) whether those
perceptions changed over the length of the study c) what
students actually did during the response sessions and
finally d) how they changed their essays as a result of
participating in the sessions.
Students were asked to submit three journal entries
during the course of the semester describing their views of
the peer response sessions. During one peer response
session the groups were audiotaped and those tapes were
transcribed. Draft essays and final copies were also
collected. Throughout the course of the semester I kept a
journal of my observations and thoughts.
Journal entries, and transcripts were analyzed and
discussed. Drafts of essays and final copies were compared
to ascertain what changes had been made by the writers.
Finally, the changes were analyzed to determine if they were
the result of comments made by peers during the sessions.
An analysis of the data revealed that the students,
although Asian and from cultures where classes are
traditionally teacher-centered tended to be positive about
peer response and became somewhat more positive as the
semester progressed. They appreciated the benefits of peer
response but did have some concerns, mainly centered around
peer feedback. During the sessions students engaged in a
variety of social, cognitive and linguistic activities as
they worked to accomplish the assigned task. Students did
revise their essays using peer comments although not as much
as I had hoped. Comments by some of the students indicated
they reserved the right to decide whether to follow the
advice given by their classmates or not.
Results suggest that it is important for teachers to
continue to use peer response sessions even with students
from cultures where teacher-centered classes are the norm
since benefits seem to outweigh disadvantages.
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