The applicability of peer learning and peer assessment in Hong Kong: A cultural perspective

Abstract

Peer learning has been well-established and extensively adopted as a teaching and learning method in higher education. The term “collaborative learning” is used interchangeably with “peer learning,” particularly in North America (Chinn, O’Donnell & Jinks, 2000; Resta & Laferrière, 2007; Sweet & Svinicki, 2007). Peer learning is generally defined as “an educational practice in which students interact with other students to attain educational goals” (Lisi & Golbeck, 1999, p. 3). It also refers to using teaching and learning strategies in which students learn with and from each other without the immediate intervention of a teacher (Boud, Cohen & Sampson, 1999). Therefore, it is a two-way reciprocal learning experience that helps students move beyond independent learning to interdependent learning and involves students learning from and with each other in both formal and informal ways. As Falchikov (2001) suggested, peer learning is not a substitute for teaching and activities designed and conducted by staff members but an important addition to the repertoire of teaching and learning activities that can enhance the quality of learning.