The Effectiveness of Structured Teaching and Modeling of Peer Editing on the Scientific Writing of High School Environmental Science Students

Abstract

The Next Generation Science Standards have shifted the focus of science instruction from rote memorization of facts to students engaging in science by discovering information, constructing explanations, engaging in arguments from evidence, and communicating ideas. One way for students to express their scientific knowledge and ideas is through writing. However, many high school students struggle with writing, and many science teachers lack the confidence and time to implement writing instruction into their curriculum. Peer review is an instructional strategy that can effectively support students as they develop their writing skills in science classrooms. This research examined the impact of structured teaching and modeling of peer editing on the scientific writing of 38 high school students in Advanced Placement Environmental Science. Treatment consisted of two peer editing lessons where students established feedback criteria, scored models with rubrics, and provided constructive feedback. Each lesson was followed by a peer editing exercise that allowed students to apply the knowledge gained. After peer editing, students read through peer feedback and made corrections to their writing. End of unit writing assessments were used to determine the impact of peer editing on student writing, and pretreatment and posttreatment surveys were used to gauge students’ familiarity with peer editing and their confidence to help their peers. In addition, a teacher journal was used to document observations during peer editing lessons, and student interviews provided insight into the perceived benefits and challenges of peer editing sessions. The results demonstrated that students felt more confident in their peer editing skills and believed the lessons improved their writing. In peer editing exercises, students asked more questions and were more engaged with their peers and the grading rubric. Although writing assessment scores did not significantly improve, both teacher and students found peer editing instruction useful.