Reaction to Peer Review

Coming into this, I wasn’t expecting much from my essay. I was well aware that there were many problems present in the essay. However, through the peer review session, now I see where the problems exist. My peers’ comments helped show me weaknesses I hadn’t examined and helped me identify methods in which I could improve. Not only were their comments helpful, but reading the essays of others helped clarify many things for me. I was unsure how to structure my essay as well as how to really approach the task at hand. Nonetheless, after seeing a few of my peers’ papers, I feel more prepared to revise my own.

Although many of the shortcomings in my essay are due to fatigue, my own weakness in writing and reading can account for just as many (or perhaps even more). Honestly, I’m surprised with how many valid suggestions were given to me through the peer review. In my past experiences, these kind of reviews were not that helpful as peers do not want to criticize a friend’s work. However, this session proved to be different. It was interesting making remarks regarding areas of improvement in my peers’ papers that also would apply to mine. Overall I would say this experience was worthwhile and rewarding.