I Heard, I Noticed, I Wondered

One way to avoid the pitfalls of peer review is to use the "I heard, I noticed, I wondered" method. With these prompts, you can provide useful feedback to a writer without being too biting in your criticism.

I heard...

As a reviewer, first try to summarize what you think the piece was about. This is the easy part. Tell the writer what you saw as the story or the main idea. As a writer, listen to this section, and try to hear whether or not you communicated what you were trying to communicate.

I noticed...

As a reviewer, tell the author about some of the things that attracted your attention. What worked well? What details seemed especially vivid or striking? What will you remember about this paper? As a writer, think about why the reviewer noticed these things, and how you can make all your writing as effective.

I wondered...

As a reviewer, did you have any questions when you finished reading? Did you not understand what something meant, or why it was included? Did something bother or disturb you? Did you suspect something might have worked better another way? This section is your chance to ask the writer all these questions. As a writer, try to answer the reviewer's questions. Look at your writing again, and see if there is any way to make those points clearer to a reader.

An example of an email peer review from a classmate.

I noticed that I can't see ANY of the links on your homepage. Your link and background color are the same, try using white links on the blue background. I also noticed that you do not have anything in your I Am. You need to get that done, the marking period is almost out. You also don't have anything done in your book review. Infact, it still says "your paper" and "br1". I saw that your poem only has ONE FREAKING LINE! Not even a stanza. I understand poems require inspiration, but come on, man, one line? I am wondering, why are you looking at vidoe game pictures, when there is not really anything on your site? Please, let me know when you get your stuff together. you could have all the talent in the world, and no one will ever know if you do not do the work to show it.

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