Peer Editing and Improved Classroom Relationships in an ESL Writing Lesson

Abstract

Writing lessons in East African ESL contexts are characterized by among other things, teacher-centeredness and one-way communication from the teacher to the students resulting in gaps in classroom relationships. Similarly, student-student relationships also exhibit detachment arising from lack of trust in the linguistic ability of peers, competition among students and lack of interactional skills. However, research and literature show a link between classroom relations and a student's academic achievements. This paper is a report of findings of a study which I conducted in a Form three class in a rural secondary school in Western Kenya, as part of my MEd dissertation that focused on improving students' compositions using peer editing. As I introduced peer editing, I was also able to observe the classroom relationships. Data for the study was gathered mainly using observation and interviews. Analysis of the findings revealed improvement in student-student and, student-teacher classroom relationships that led to increased interest in writing tasks. The findings suggest that peer editing, which introduces collaboration in a writing task, could be a means of bridging the gap among students and in student- teacher relationships. (188 words)