A peer review assignment enables students to provide feedback on another student’s assignment submission. Peer reviews allow communication between students and can help students master the concepts of a course and learn from each other.

 

Setting up a Peer Review Assignment

1. Log in to Canvas.

2. Navigate to your course in Canvas.

3. From the left-side course navigation menu, select Assignments.

4. In the top right corner, select the purple +Assignment button.

5. Enter a title, instructions, points, and due dates within the Assignment settings.

6. Next to Peer Review, select the checkbox to the right of "Require Peer Reviews". Checking this box will let Canvas know that this is now a Peer Review assignment.

7. Choose one of the "How to Assign Peer Reviews" options:

• Manually Assign Peer Reviews - The instructor will have to manually assign peer reviews to specific students.
• Automatically Assign Peer Reviews - Canvas will automatically assign one student's submission to a different student for peer review.
  • Reviews Per User - enter the number of reviews each student needs to complete.
  • Assign Reviews - Choose a date when Canvas will assign each student the required reviews. If this field is left blank, Canvas will automatically assign peer reviews on the due date of this assignment.

8. Determine if you would like peer reviews to be anonymous. If checked, students will not see the names of other students while reviewing. 

9. Once all settings are correct, select the Save & Publish button located in the bottom right corner.

 

 

Manually Assigning Peer Reviews

After creating the assignment and checking the box next to "Peer Review", instructors who chose to manually assign peer reviews will need to go back to the assignment and give students a submission to review.

1. Select Assignments from the left side course navigation menu.

2. Select the title of the Peer review assignment.

3. On the right side of the Assignment details page, under "Related Items", select Peer Reviews.

4. A list of enrolled students will appear; to assign a peer review, select "Give [student's name] another submission to assess +".

Note: To confirm a student has yet to be assigned a peer review, under their name it will say "None Assigned". 

5. Select the drop-down menu that appears under the student's name, then select the name of the student that you want this person to review.

6. Select Add.

The name selected from the drop-down will then appear directly under the reviewer's name. After adding, the reviewer will get an email notification that they have been assigned a submission to review for this assignment.

 

FAQ

Can I automatically assign peer reviews after choosing to manually assign peer reviews?

Yes. On the Peer Review assign page, instructors can enter a number next to "reviews per user", and then select Assign Peer Reviews. Canvas will then automatically assign that number of peer reviews per student.

How do I know if a student has completed a peer review?

On the Peer Review assign page, students that have a checkmark next to their name mean the peer review is completed. If there is an exclamation icon, then the student has not completed the peer review.

 

Can I attach a rubric to peer reviews?

Yes, instructors can add a rubric the same way they would with a regular assignment. For step-by-step instructions visit: https://community.canvaslms.com/t5/Instructor-Guide/How-do-I-add-a-rubric-to-an-assignment/ta-p/1058

 

Can I set a different due date for the peer review portion of the assignment?

Currently, there is no way to set a different due date for the peer review. Instructors can only set one due date in the Assignment settings. If the peer review portion is due on a different date, communicate that with students externally or add the specific date within the assignment instructions.

 

Can I grade the peer review separately from the main assignment?

No. There will only be one field to enter an overall grade for each student. If you would like to grade it separately then we suggest creating a new separate assignment with the submission type set to No Submission. This will create a column in the gradebook to input grades for the peer review. For step-by-step instructions visit: https://athelp.sfsu.edu/hc/en-us/articles/8157528614419-Adding-a-grade-item-to-your-Canvas-gradebook

 

Can students annotate directly on peer reviews when "Anonymous peer reviews" is enabled?

No. If this setting is checked, students cannot directly annotate the submission they review because annotations include the name of the student who wrote it.