How do I use peer review discussions in a course?

A peer review discussion enables students to provide feedback on another student's reply to a class discussion. Peer reviews are a tool that allows communication between students and can help students master the concepts of a course and learn from each other.

Peer reviews can only be added as part of a graded discussion. Unlike peer review assignments, discussions cannot be assigned anonymously.

Also unlike assignments, discussions do not allow intra-group peer reviews. When you require peer reviews for a discussion, students can only complete peer reviews for discussion replies made by other students in their group.

 

View Peer Review Discussions

  View Peer Review Discussions

When you or a TA create a peer review graded discussion, you can assign peer reviews manually or you can have Canvas assign them automatically [1].

When a peer review has been assigned, students can view a notification in their Dashboard To Do sidebar or Activity Stream [2]. Students will also receive an email notification.

 

View Peer Review Comments

  View Peer Review Comments

To complete a peer review, students must review the discussion and leave a comment on the submission details page [1].

Students cannot view previously submitted comments by any other reviewers, including comments by TAs or other instructors.

You can also assign a rubric to the graded discussion. If the discussion includes a rubric [2], students must only complete the rubric to complete the peer review. However, you can choose to ask your students to also leave a comment in the comment sidebar. The rubric score is used for an assessment opinion only; you must review the graded discussion and assign the final grade.

 

View Peer Review Grades

Students do not receive a grade for completing a peer review. If you want to assign extra points for peer reviews, you can create a No Submission assignment in the Gradebook and assign points manually. The Peer Review page for the discussion will show the names of students who have completed the peer review.

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