Peer & Self Assessment

By Bill, posted

Peer and self assessment allows learners to assess both each other and their own progress. Both methods encourage learners to monitor progress, take responsibility for their own work and to help others. When used correctly it can correct mistakes and help learners develop in their chosen subject area.

Peer Assessment

Peer assessment is all about assessing another's learning performance in a constructive and supportive manner. When given in the right way it can allow fellow learners to dissect each other's performance and prevent complacency from setting in.

It is also useful for the learners who are involved in the observation process. When giving a set criteria they are able to tick off both strengths and weaknesses in their fellow learners work. Subconsciously they are learning themselves about how to accurately meet criteria and can pick up on fresh ideas that could help with their own work.

The teacher's responsibility is to clearly outline the assessment criteria. Learners cannot always have a free reign and could go off point when giving feedback. Debating can be a useful tool in the learning process; however learners should not end up demotivated through the assessment process.

Self Assessment

Self Assessment is the process of analyzing your own performance, leading to the setting of goals and possible future improvements. Arguably harder to implement and requires quite a bit of discipline form the learner to identify one's own mistakes. Despite this it can be just as rewarding as peer assessment and lead to significant improvements in productivity and eventual grades.

Teachers can assist in this process by coming up with a clear strategy / plan on how and when self assessment will occur. Sometimes learners may fall into the trap of feeling that they have achieved more than they have. Teachers can counteract this by confirming their achievements one-on-one.

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