INCORPORATING TECHNICAL PEER REVIEW OF CIVIL ENGINEERING STUDENT PROJECTS

Practicing engineers use peer review of most work products on a regular basis. While peer review of team members and peer review of classmate's writing and presentation has been extensively researched, the use of student peer review of engineering work products has not been similarly explored in engineering. This paper presents the implementation of a peer-review cycle into the team course project in both a junior-level structural analysis course and a senior-level capstone civil engineering design course. The peer review process asks students to evaluate and provide feedback on both the analytical content as well as the written presentation of the project. This process allows students to see different approaches to the same problem. Their familiarity with the problem allows them to provide constructive feedback, while reviewing the work of another group allows them an objectivity they cannot yet apply to their own work. The peer review cycle not only enhances the learning of the material for the course, but it is also a critical engineering skill for students. This paper presents a model for classroom practice, which is based on the peer review, tutoring, and teaching literature, to develop both knowledge and skills in students.