Peer Critique of Partner’s “Robert Johnson” Draft

I encourage you to refer back to these peer critique instructions as you revise your own paper over the next week.

When you turn in your paper February 1^st, the final draft should be on top. It must be over 4 pages (over 1400 words). Next, should be the peer critique your partner completes for you today in class. This is very important; if you don’t include it, your partner will get an “F” on her peer critique. These two documents must be stapled together.

Peer Critique Instructions: Open your draft and go to File – Save As… and change File Name to “Peer Critique.” This should preserve your original draft. Change seats with a partner. Chose a different font or ALL CAPS and type your name in bold across the top of your partner’s draft. You want to leave the computer lab having given your partner much to think about as she revises her paper. Your performance on this peer critique is graded.

a) read your partner’s paper once through

Now, with a different font or ALL CAPS and typing between your partner’s sentences and at the end of her paper, use prompts “b” through “e ” to offer her as much helpful feedback as you can. Save often has you work.

b) read her draft again, this time marking any obvious errors in spelling or grammar and also offering praise by letting your partner know what she is doing well.

c) at the end of her draft, pose some questions that will get your partner re-thinking,

re-visioning this first draft.

d) open your copy of Mystery Train, get out your class notes, and find the assignment description. Based on your knowledge of the Robert Johnson chapter, what is missing from your partner’s draft? Which ideas could be expanded? Where does her draft feel weakest or most unclear?

e) point your partner directly to some specific quotes in Marcus’s text that might help her strengthen her paper.

IMPORTANT NOTE: We haven’t yet discussed the critical skills of summarizing, paraphrasing, quoting, or avoiding plagiarism when writing about Marcus’s text. PLEASE read Hacker 52c and 53 a, b, and c before turning in your own final draft on February 1^st.

ALSO, PLEASE look back to the comments I made on your short paper that you turned in the second week of class. Apply my corrections and comments to your revisions of your final Robert Johnson paper.