Introducing Peer Review of Creative Works

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Introducing Peer Review of Creative Works
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The Creative Process

• All creative works require refinement and
  audience feedback.
• The goal of the creator is to accomplish his/her
  goal with the creative work, AND to influence the
  audience with the work.
• For example, your passion about flowers must go
  beyond your personal expression. You should try
  to invoke an interest in the viewer of your work.
  Your web site should visually draw in the viewer
  and be informative.
• Thus, we use peer-review to get this audience
  feed-back.

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Peer Review Process

• Before reviewing a creative work, read the
  artists note carefully to ensure you understand
  the goal of the creator.
• With the artists goal in mind, study the work to
  determine if it influences you in the intended
  manner.
• What works and what does not.
• Think in very concrete terms, when possible.

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Effective peer review

• Goes beyond saying
• I like this.
• I do not like this.
• Its okay.
• This is great
• This is awful

• The creator needs to know
• Why do you like or not like the work?
• If its OK, what could be improved or what is
  good about the work?
• Does the work accomplish its goals?

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Effective peer review

• Points to ideas, images, links, sounds, words and
  phrases in the work and responds to them
• Makes concrete suggestions
• Asks questions
• Compliments what is done well
• Comments on gaps

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Good strategies for peer reviews

• For example, you might say
• I know you have a passion for flowers, but I find
  your links uninformative. Several links are to
  alphabetical glossaries, but I dont know where
  to start. Could you link to a couple of your
  favorite flowers?
• Why do you like flowers? Are they easy to grow?
  Are they pretty? Both?
• Your images are pretty, but what flowers are they?

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Good strategies for peer review

• Suggests
• Could you provide a set of links for beginners?
• Could you create a series of your favorite flower
  pictures with links to information about care and
  handling?
• Perhaps a poem about how flowers influence you,
  may help me understand their power over people.
• Should you have a different background color that
  brings out your flower pictures more?

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Good strategies for peer review

• Asks
• What is your goal for your links?
• What is your strategy for drawing people into
  your web site?
• Is there a role for humor in your site or should
  it be strictly serious?
• Do you plan to appeal to beginners as well as
  flower experts?

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Good strategies for peer review

• Compliments I really like your webpage because
• Your links work well for experts, because a
  wealth of information is readily available from
  them.
• I like the way your images draw me to your site.
• Your web page composition appeals to me, because
  there is a balance of visual and informative
  elements.

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Good strategies for peer review

• Depersonalize your comments
• General audience members may find your webpage
  confusing.
• Your site could use an element that would cause
  someone to stop and look more closely.