Friendship bias in peer assessment of EFL oral presentations

The increasing emphasis on learner-centered teaching has led to the widespread adoption of peer assessment in educational settings. Peer assessment promotes inclusivity, and contributes to a fair and comprehensive classroom assessment system by involving students in evaluations, regardless of whether they are formative or summative. However, it also carries potential biases that may compromise its fairness and reliability. Given the important role of friendships in school life, classroom social dynamics can influence evaluations.

Associate Professor Mitsuko Tanaka at Osaka Metropolitan University’s Graduate School of Sustainable System Sciences examined the influence of friendship – and its interaction with gender and second language oral presentation skills – on peer assessment among Japanese university students learning English as a foreign language. The analysis drew on questionnaire responses, oral presentation scores, and peer ratings of classmates’ presentations. Results from mixed-effects modelling indicate subtle biases related to friendship and rater gender in peer assessment.

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