ACTIVITY 9.7
Giving/Receiving Feedback

Read your peers' drafts (depending on how your peer review process has been organized) twice: once silently and again aloud. Then, use the following items to guide your written feedback.

Initial responses

• What are the best parts of the draft?

• What did you find most interesting?

• What was the best passage or detail of the draft?

• What was the best-written passage?

• What did you learn about the virtual community?

Describing the draft

• Write a fifty-word abstract of the draft.

• Construct an outline of the draft, using a Roman numeral for each part of the essay (i.e., introduction, body, conclusion), a capital letter for each paragraph, and an Arabic numeral for each supporting detail.

Evaluating the draft

• Is the draft "analytical" or more descriptive or narrative?

• Were there any points where you got "lost" in the draft? What might have caused your confusion?

• Look at the outline you wrote. Does it flow logically from point to point, or do you think that some parts might be rearranged?

• Evaluate the content. What else do you think you need to know to understand the draft? Did you find any generalizations or assertions that could use more support? Any generalizations or assertions that could use better support? Are the details used judiciously?

• Evaluate the language and style. When you read the draft aloud, did you stumble over any phrases? Did you notice any drawn-out sentences that left you nearly breathless? Did you notice any short, choppy sentences that might have created a staccato, telegrapahic rhythm? Is the level of formality and sophistication appropriate for the audience?

Revision ideas

• What are the good parts of the draft the writer might build upon?

• In general, what are the areas needing improvement?

• In detail, what do you believe the writer needs to do improve the draft? For example, does the writer need to add more information? Where? What kind? Cut out some details? Which ones? Why?