Abstract:

The shift towards student-centered learning in higher education has highlighted the need for assessment practices that actively engage learners and foster self-regulation. Peer assessment has emerged as a promising approach; however, its effectiveness depends on students’ perceptions, confidence, and ability to provide meaningful feedback. This study explores these dimensions in teacher education degrees.

The experience was conducted in the course Processes and Educational Contexts at the Universitat Rovira i Virgili, involving first-year students from four education degrees (n=207). Two peer assessment activities were integrated into the course design: the evaluation of group oral presentations using structured rubrics and the assessment of an educational project. A pre-post questionnaire was administered to analyze changes in students’ perceptions regarding prior experience, perceived competence, trust in peers, and the usefulness of peer assessment for learning.

Results show a significant increase in students’ confidence in peer assessment processes. The proportion of students considering their peers capable of evaluating fairly increased from 78.7% to 89.5% (χ²=9.66**), while those reporting sufficient knowledge to assess rose from 63.3% to 79.3% (χ²=3.21*). Additionally, students felt more comfortable being evaluated by peers (from 58% to 82.5%; χ²=2.79*). A shift in assessment preferences was also observed, with a decrease in preference for exclusive teacher-led assessment (from 76.3% to 68.4%; χ²=9.18**).

Regarding perceived usefulness, students reported consistently high ratings (M≈3.75–4.16/5) across items related to reflection, improvement, and motivation, indicating that peer feedback was considered meaningful for learning, despite some concerns about workload and feedback quality.

These findings highlight the importance of carefully designed peer assessment experiences, including clear criteria and structured guidance. The study provides empirical evidence supporting peer assessment as an effective strategy to promote active learning and student engagement in higher education.

Keywords:

Active learning, Feedback, Higher education, Peer assessment, Student engagement.