A literature review on peer assessment

The use of peer assessment as an alternative form of assessment is reported to be helpful in learning and is increasingly being adopted in higher education overseas and even in primary schools in Singapore. People had been talking about peer assessment way back in the 20th century 1980s. Drawing on literature until end January of 2013, we reviewed past empirical research studies and peer–reviewed articles on peer assessment in the educational settings. This review is organised into two topics: the implementation strategies of peer assessment and the problems encountered and potential problems during implementation of peer assessment. The conclusions suggest that peer assessment can be implemented and its benefits are evident. Several limitations of previous literature were discussed. We conclude by providing some recommendations to some of the discussions and also some recommendations for future research related to peer assessment in the educational settings.