Impact of Online Peer Assessment on Reflective Writing Performance: ——Based on SNA and Assessment Emotion Analysis

Abstract

Online peer assessment has been widely applied to online learning and instruction. There is growing evidence to suggest that online peer assessment which allows for high degree of interactivity among learners can benefit their learning artifact. Reflective writing is a common learning artifact produced by students. Thus, this study focused on the impact and underlying mechanism of online peer assessment on reflective writing performance. Specifically, this study explored the impact of online peer assessment on students’ reflective writing from the perspective of social interaction and assessment emotion, and provided implications for effectively improving reflective writing in online learning environment. Based on an online learning platform, thirty-seven undergraduate students participated in this study. The results showed that: Firstly, online peer assessment significantly improved students’ reflective writing performance in terms of originality and elaboration. Secondly, as the assessor, the more assessment students provided to their peers, the more the originality of their reflective writing improved; as the assessee, the more critical assessment students received from their peers, the more the elaboration of their reflective writing improved. Lastly, students in large size subgroups are at the core of the network, and they benefit more from online peer assessment.