How Can You Provide Meaningful Feedback to Your Peers?
After watching the videos Writing Peer Review Top 10 Mistakes, and What is Peer Editing? as well as the slideshow Peer Edit With Perfection Tutorial, I have to say that I have a learned a lot. One of the main things that I have learned is to be honest when critiquing other people's work. The key is to do it with a positive attitude and to not be rude or mean about it. As the peer editing slideshow states, start with compliments, then suggestions, and finally corrections. I personally struggle with editing my fellow peers work because I tend to sugar coat the good things about their paper but at the same time not bringing up their spelling mistakes, run-on sentences, or the fact that they have gone completely off topic. I think I do this because I don't know how to say what I'm thinking in a way that doesn't come out rude. After watching these videos however, I have learned that it is best to tell others the mistakes in their work and that their are ways to do so that won't come off mean. This is important because in order for myself and others to grow as writers, we all need a little bit of constructive criticism, even if it isn't what we want to hear.
You're right Tara, when you're editing someone else's work, it is best to give them respect and build them up, not tear them down. There are plenty of ways to do that without coming off as rude. Trust me, I struggle with that sometimes, but when you have the mindset of knowing that you're helping someone, it makes it easier to point out what someone might have done wrong!
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