Peer Editing Worksheet: Essay #2 (Analyzing Evidence)
Elizabth Losh

This peer editing sheet should take 30-40 minutes to complete.  DO #1 and #2 IN PERSON DURING CLASS OR BEFORE THE NEXT CLASS MEETING!  Don't leave any questions blank.  Your section leader may ask you to download two peer editing sheets from the web, if you are reading two different people's essays. 

Remember that it is important to get feedback to the other person promptly and well before the final draft is due so that the writer can use your comments in the revision process. 

Your section leader may allow you to use e-mail or you may contact your partner in the dorms or by telephone to discuss your criticism so the revision process can progress quickly. 
Overly general or uncritical comments in peer editing will lower your class participation writing grade.

This peer editing sheet includes page references to the Writer's Handbook, but you may also want to point out helpful passages from Writing from A to Z.  Remember that both books have alphabetical indexes!


NAME OF WRITER ____________________________________

NAME OF READER ____________________________________

GENERAL RATING OF COMPLETENESS AND POLISH OF THIS DRAFT BY THE READER (1-10, where ten is highest)  ____________

GENERAL RATING OF THOROUGHNESS AND HELPFULNESS OF PEER EDITING COMMENTS BY THE WRITER (1-10, where ten is highest) __________

1. Before you read the paper, ask the writer what he or she discovered about this particular sense.  Using your own words, paraphrase the implied argument that the writer found.  Write your answer here, while your impressions are fresh in your mind.





2. In class, ask to see the writer's Reader, pre-writing grid(s), and notes.  Describe what you saw.  How thoroughly did the writer gather and analyze all the possible evidence in the text(s)?    Did they really look at all the evidence?  Write your answer here, while your impressions are fresh in your mind.





3. Now that you have read the paper, how was the writer's thesis different from what he or she said in response to question #1?   Did the argument sound better in person or on paper?  Why?





4. Rank the evidence that the writer used in importance.   Remember, this might not be the order in which the evidence appeared in the paper.  Make sure to list at least five key terms, phrases, or
scenes. 




5.  List quotations that were longer than they needed to be and then underline the essential parts.





6.  Mark any places in the essay with "*" where the writer has not provided enough explanation of a particular quotation.  Suggest improvements in the margin nearby.





7. List all the specific techniques from the Analysis Checklist (46-47) that the writer uses and write the page number of the essay where the technique appears.






8.  It can be difficult to connect analysis of a narrative to analysis of an implied argument contained in a narrative.  Re-read the section on analyzing narrative in the Writer's Handbook (48-52).  Which section of this chapter would be most relevant to the improving the writer's essay and why?  Give the writer page numbers for reference.






9.  Does the writer analyze individual shots (55-57) or particular images (58-62) in the film?  If yes, give examples.





10. What did you like best about the writer's essay?  In which rubric category (26-27) would you give the essay highest marks?





11. In your opinion, where is the essay most in need of revision?  In which rubric category (26-27) would you give the essay lowest marks?   Why?





12. What page in Writing from A to Z would you recommend to the writer to improve his or her grammar and mechanics.