Graduate Research Papers

Availability

Open Access Graduate Research Paper

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine teachers' perceptions of peer editing in upper elementary classrooms. Semi-structured interviews were the central focus of this study. Six teachers participated in the study. Two taught fourth grade, two taught fifth grade, and two taught sixth grade. Each teacher was interviewed twice. In the first round of interviews, open-ended questions were asked of the teachers. In the second round of interviews, teachers were asked to elaborate or clarify selected responses to initial questions and were asked to comment on the preliminary findings from the first round of interviews. This study produced seven findings about how teachers perceive peer editing in upper elementary classrooms. The first finding indicated that student selection was the most popular method of developing editing groups or partners and that these selections were made on the basis of friendship rather than ability. Second, teachers believed that modeling of the editing process and careful instruction dealing with appropriate responses were crucial to the success of peer editing. Third, most teachers perceived their role to be that of a circulating helper, giving individual assistance to students. Fourth, teachers believed that students reacted positively to peer editing, and they saw very little difficulty with disagreements or poor attitude. Fifth, teachers agreed that there is a strong correlation between reading ability and the ability to locate errors in writing. Sixth, teachers expressed some concern over the lack of transfer of skills they saw in students' writing, but they stated that more transfer took place after peer editing than with traditional instruction. Seventh, teachers believed that peer editing was beneficial for all students regardless of ability. Teachers mentioned time constraints and occasional management problems as minor disadvantages.

Year of Submission

1989

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Education

Department

Department of Curriculum and Instruction

First Advisor

David W. Moore

Comments

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Date Original

1989

Object Description

1 PDF file (80 leaves)

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

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