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no criteria for evaluation provided) and the format of evaluation procedure (anonymous
vs. non-anonymous) affect the accuracy of self and peer ratings. A brief section
introducing the peer evaluation technique and reviewing the literature pertinent to the
question of reliability of peer assessments opens the study followed by a section that lays
out theoretical underpinning of the research. Next, I describe the research design and
experimental procedures, followed by the discussion of the results of experiments. I
conclude with the general discussion of some aspects of the evaluation procedure that
might jeopardize or enhance the validity and reliability of students’ judgments and
identify possible directions for the future research in this area.
What is Self and Peer Evaluation and Why Use It?
Peer assessment is an exercise in which students practice the skills needed for
life-long learning (particularly, evaluation and critical thinking skills) by evaluating other
students and observing how others evaluate the results of their learning. Peer assessment
may also include the prior setting of criteria and the selection of evidence of achievement
(Biggs 1999; Brown, Rust and Gibbs 1994). Peer-assessment is often combined or
considered together with self-assessment since the former can enhance the latter. By
judging the work of others, students gain insight into their own performance, thus, the
practice of external evaluation provides a model for internal self-assessment (Bostock
2001).
Any form of self and peer assessment
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has many potential benefits for the
assessor and the assessee. It encourages students’ autonomy and higher order thinking
skills
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. It augments students’ responsibility for their own learning, intellectual
independence, and self-confidence. It “helps students develop the ability to make
judgments, a necessary skill for study and professional life” (Brown, Rust, and Gibbs,
1994).
The peer assessment data are frequently used in assigning individual students’
grades. This raises a series of potential problems concerning the validity and reliability of
peer evaluations, and questions about the merits and accuracy of the students’ feedback.
It also reminds us about the perils of intrusion into the private realm of students by
making personal information publicly available
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.
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There is a variety of forms of self and peer evaluation including, but not limited to, formative peers’
reviews to provide feedback, summative grading, evaluation as an element of students’ tutoring, etc. The
formative and summative evaluations differ in their purpose. The goal of formative evaluations is to
provide feedback so that to improve an individual student’s efforts in grasping the material or mastering
important skills and to make suggestions as to enhance the student’s academic performance. Summative
evaluation purports making various personal decisions, concerning students’ academic performances and
assigning their individual grades. Summative evaluation is more standardized and is frequently used for
comparing one student’s performance with another’s.
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For the review of the levels of cognitive learning refer to Bloom, B.S., Englehart, M.D., Furst, E.J., Hill,
W.H., and Krthwohl, D.R. (1956). Taxonomy of educational objectives, Handbook I: The cognitive
domain. New York: David McKay
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The question of the legitimacy of peer evaluation was a subject of the US Supreme Court hearings held in
November 2001 – February 2002 (Owasso Independent School District v. Falvo (Case No.00-1073)). The
US Supreme Court upheld the legitimacy of peer assessment finding no violation of a federal law that
guarantees the privacy of educational record (The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974).
However, this case drew much public attention to the possible negative consequences of peer grading.
Convention