On Gaining New Perceptions Through Peer Review

As I tend to fear judgment of my writing capabilities, I have refrained from opportunities to engage in peer review in the past, however, as peer review is implemented into my freshman course, it was unavoidable. I was worried at first, and was nervous to share my assignment drafts with my group, however after having fully experienced this form of critiquing, I am glad that my english course pushed me out of my comfort zone. Both gaining feedback about my writing skills from my peers and providing advice to my peers to strength their ideas have ultimately benefitted me. Allowing my peers to comment on my drafts without me defending my work has given me insight into new writing perspectives.

The most influential advice I received thus far regarded my Extended Inquiry Project, in which I chose to research and write about the infringement of privacy rights via the usage of modern technology. Initially, my topic had been much too vague, and would not have formulated an in-depth paper. My peers talked to me about this, as asked me several key questions to encourage me to specify my topic further. "Are you going to focus on multiple types of technology, or a specific kind?" "How are you going to talk about such a vague term like privacy?" Comments like these influenced me to ultimately discuss how the Fourth Amendment protects consumer privacy in relation to surveillance technology. Likewise, the questions I posed to my peers also served as a means of self-reflection for my own paper. On multiple occasions, I had asked, "Is this phrase really necessary?," and "Is there a way to make these sentences more concise?" Asking these questions influenced me to ask myself the same questions when finalizing assignments.

MIT Tech's video, entitled "No One Writes Alone: Peer Review in the Classroom, A Guide for Students," reinforces all of the aspects I mentioned about my own experience with peer review. Not only do the instructors in the video discuss the importance of sharing perspectives, but they also explain how peer review comes into play in the professional workplace. Many stated that in jobs, peer review is no longer limited to others of equal levels; rather, peers can be new employees or experts at the same job. I had not considered how critiquing in the workplace is different than in a classroom setting, and this video provided good information for me to keep in consideration for my future.