PEER MARKING - DOES IT REALLY IMPROVE STUDENT LEARNING?

The paper reports on an initiative which aims to improve student achievement by boosting tutorial engagement via the introduction of peer-marked assignments. A compulsory first-year course, perceived as a difficult,, gatekeeper. course, was chosen for evaluation of the initiative. Lack of student engagement in tutorials was perceived by the lecturers as a significant barrier to improved student achievement. To encourage tutorial attendance and participation, students received a small number of marks for doing a (two-weekly) tutorial assignment, and marking another's, under the guidance of an academic staff member. Attendance at tutorial sessions consequently improved radically. Survey results indicated that most students considered peer-marking had made them think more deeply about the material and also about how a solution was communicated. Examination performance improved over earlier years, and there is evidence that circuit theory concepts were retained better into the following year.