I felt that the conferencing session with my peers was overall helpful. I thought it was helpful because I was comfortable enough with my peers to allow them to read my paper and give me positive and negative feedback. I usually do not have anyone read or review papers that I write. I felt this experience will encourage me to do so in the future though for a couple different reasons. First of all, my peers were able to make suggestions that I myself would not have thought to do. Secondly, they were able to spot errors that I probably would not have caught and provide suggestions to make my paper stronger.
I remember doing peer editing and peer revising in the classroom in middle school and upper elementary school. I think it is a good practice for the classroom because it takes the child out of their comfort zone and allows the peer to provide the writer with a new perspective. I think a con of this practice would be the student not feeling comfortable having someone else read his or her work. I remember when I was in elementary and middle school always worrying that who ever was going to read my paper would think it was horrible! I feel that it is harder for some children to share their work but providing them with the opportunities to do so will allow them to become more comfortable over time and better readers and writers.
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I'm glad this was beneficial for you! I agree that the comfort levels of children will be differing, but creating a nurturing, respectful classroom environment from the outset can alleviate some of the anxiety. I have also found that even if a child is uncomfortable on the outset, she is often very appreciative of the critical eye because of the improvement and learning that occurs as a result.
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