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Peer-Reviewed Essay Assignment

Length:  Approximately 2+ pages single-spaced in an appropriate and purposefully selected format; serif font

This assignment will provide clear instructions for doing/making/using something with which your audience might not be familiar. Your project must have an observable action or “finished product”.

Your topic:

• is limited only in that it must be legal, moral, and not dangerous;
• a volunteer peer reviewer must be able to follow your instructions in person (optional);
• and there should be a “finished product” or an action which can be observed by others-a concrete, not abstract, task.

Although the task does not have to be complex, it should be something NOT familiar to everyone.

Peer-Reviewed Essay Assignment

Your own photographs, drawings or illustrations must be included, but the biggest percent of your paper must be written directions (remember, this is an English class, not an art class).  The directions should be mostly in sentence/paragraph form-not just a list of steps consisting of sentence fragments-although lists of supplies or numbered steps are permissible.

Although a classmate, friend or family member will be your immediate audience, your instructions should be written for a wider audience-a lay audience which would not receive materials and help from you in order to follow your instructions.

Your instructions must include:

• an effective title
• a clear introduction explaining why this task is beneficial to the reader, about how long it will take, and how many steps are involved
• a list of materials, tools, ingredients, or similar
• a minimum of one graphic that supports your process, labeled and referred to in text
• numbered steps with effective action verbs (a minimum of 10+ steps – feel free to break your steps into sections as appropriate, such as: preparing the guitar for stringing, stringing the guitar, tuning the guitar)
• an effective conclusion which wraps up the document and provides additional information

You will be receiving at least ONE type of peer review. Evidence of one type is required.

• The first peer review will be conducted with a classmate during class and will concentrate on the effectiveness of the writing and design of your document. *See the class schedule for peer review day.
• The second type of peer review will be usability testing, where the draft of your assignment will be tested by a volunteer of your choosing (such as a roommate, a friend or family member). For this testing, you must supply all the equipment and supplies necessary for your volunteer to successfully follow your instructions. This type is optional.

Peer-Reviewed Essay Assignment

IMPORTANT In order to receive a grade on this assignment, someone must peer review or test your draft.  They should indicate their name on the draft they tested and made comments on and fill out the peer review validation form; you will need to submit the peer review validation form and draft as a scanned PDF or photograph when you turn in your assignment for grading.

Submit your assignment through the Blackboard portal including the following, clearly named documents:

• Grading draft of your instructions
• A filled out and saved, scanned or photographed peer review validation form
• A saved, scanned or photographed peer reviewed draft with comments

CAUTION As this is a writing class intended to provide you with writing experience, it is expected that you will write your own instructions, rather than “borrowing” them from another source. While prewritten instructions are easy to find, this is an unethical practice and will result in a zero for the assignment. Use APA referencing style.