"Two Heads Are Better Than One”: A Curricular Innovation Through Peer Feedback in a Low-Proficiency ESL Writing Class
Abstract
Peer feedback benefits in composition have been researched in various EFL and ESL contexts. Typically carried out in intermediate to advanced proficiency–level contexts, little has been done with low-level students, potentially because of greater perceived challenges with syntactic, grammatical, and linguistic knowledge. This curriculum-inquiry project investigates the effects of using a collaborative approach rather than an evaluative approach for peer feedback in low-proficiency–level writing tasks. Working alongside an existing reading and writing curriculum, the peer feedback innovation seeks to support the overall course goals while providing explicit, scaffolded support to navigate the necessary pragmalinguistic knowledge, collaborative attitudes, and peer feedback tasks. In addition to the student-reported benefits of feedback and linguistic evidence of their ability/inability to incorporate collaborative attitudes, the inquiry ends with practical suggestions for writing instructors of low-proficiency students.