PROMPT: Reflect on the peer-review process with you as the reviewer. How did it feel to read and critique someone else’s writing? What did you learn that you can apply to your own writing as you revise your final essay?
It was an interesting process for sure. It was difficult to critique someone else’s writing effectively without feeling rude. It was very informative, however. I feel that it helped me learn a few things to look out for as I revise my own final essay. First, I need to make sure that my language is appropriate for the audience. One way I can do this is by having someone who has no biology background read through my essay and highlight any areas they either didn’t understand or needed to really read in depth and use context to understand. If there are things they highlighted that I feel is still appropriate, I don’t have to change it, but it will still provide a useful source of information to give me an idea of how appropriate my essay is in general. Second, I am going to make sure I really emphasize the importance of thesis, and why it matters to the reader. It’s easy to just start writing when you have an idea. It’s easy to get fixated on making a solid argument to back up your claims, and completely forget to explain exactly why my thesis is important in the first place. One other thing I am going to really make sure to keep in mind as I revise my essay is making sure that I provide any background info needed to explain why it’s important, and to define exactly what I am discussing. It’s easy to assume other people will know your own definition of subjective terminology (for example, over-weight/obese can mean completely different things to different people. My classification may not match exactly what other people think.) Also, if there is a set objective number/quantity, I will be sure to provide it and explain it so I’m sure the reader and myself are on the same page.
The peer-review process was really beneficial in regard to improving my own essay. It helped highlight some things for myself to make sure to check and gave me a good idea about how to make my argument as strong as possible. It is a little scary having someone else read my paper though! Even if their response is anonymous, I still know that another human is critiquing my work, and it’s a little frightening! I look forward to finding out their thoughts and incorporating their feedback into my work though. I am sure it will help me write a stronger essay, and give some ideas where I could expand on, or where I spent too much time talking about.
