Using Calibrated Peer Review As A Teaching Tool For Structural Technology In Architecture

Calibrated Peer Review (CPR) is a web-based software tool for incorporating writing assignments in course that are not typically writing intensive. The intent is for students to write and critique the work of their peers on technical topics by learning to calibrate writing samples and then anonymously reviewing a subset of their classmates writing assignments, freeing the instructor from the time consuming task of grading every student’s work. This learning tool was used for a required graduate course in architectural structural systems in the Master of Architecture program at Texas A&M University. The student learning outcome was to improve the performance of a written term report on an architectural building case study conducted by a team of first year graduates through practice and exposure to varied levels of quality writing, and to reinforce the need for academic integrity with respect to the incorporation of non-original work. This paper will present the analysis of the scored data and student performance with respect to the CPR assignments, their originality, and term report quality. The student feed back from directly after the assignments and at the conclusion of the semester will be presented, along with an analysis of that feedback and the effectiveness of the learning tool.