Hey guys! Back again for week 2 of blogging and I sure have a lot to say this week! Have you ever really thought about how helpful honest, constructive criticism can be when it comes to writing? I always become to attached to all the sentences and words I decide to use in papers. When I go back by myself to proofread and edit, I sometimes will look over sentences that might not sound exactly right because I am too close to my own work. Having an honest, outside source offer helpful, constructive criticism I found this really works to improve your paper for the best.
Just this week, we had two peer editing sessions in class for our "This I Believe" paper and I found both sessions extremely productive. The first one-on-one session really gave me a personalized and detailed critique on my paper and prepared me for the second peer editing session. The second session I found most helpful for a couple of reasons. First of all, since we had to read our papers aloud to the class, I found that I put the most effort into it when editing from my previous draft. Since public speaking can be intimidating, even if it is just to a small group of peers, I am sure most people did this too; this way I was confident and comfortable with what I was saying to the class. Second of all, when reading aloud, the audience and the speaker both really get a chance to hear how the paper actually sounds. The way one uses their voice with different tones, speeds, pitches, and vocabulary really helps point out what may need a bit of tweaking or what is not necessary for the paper. Also, having an entire classroom of people there to offer criticisms or applause really helps the writer get a better grip and understanding on what it is exactly they need to do to make the paper the best writing it could possibly be.
I found the two peer editing sessions this week extremely helpful and am very grateful we had the chance to do them in class. I am interested to know what you all thought about the time we spent on critiquing and editing each others work! Worth it or skip it next time? I cannot wait to hear your thoughts!
Until next time,
Kirk
Hey Kirk! I totally agree with you blog! I found both of the peer editing sections to be extremely helpful and productive! I think reading them aloud was so helpful because, lets be honest, speaking to a crowd is way different than speaking to yourself out loud! Right? I definitely think it was worth it!
ReplyDeletePeer editing definitely helps me, as does reading a piece out loud. It can help to point how the degree to which some sentences truly do not work, even when they sound fitting in your head.
ReplyDeleteI agree as well that the peer editing was really worth the time. Also, as much as I hated having to read outloud it was worth it and I think really helped to feel the pacing and rhythm of the piece that its hard to get on your own.
ReplyDelete