My students do quite a lot of their work in projects and much of that work is outside my view. While I can just give everyone on a team the same grade (or not) it is useful to me to know who is contributing to the work and how they are contributing. I don't require everyone contribute either the same "amount" (whatever that means) or in the same way?
How can I manage peer evaluation so that I get useful information for grading, for advisement, and for course improvement?
I want my students to have a way to comment on the work of their peers on group projects. They can also comment on their own contributions, perhaps, as well. This is especially valuable, I think, when students to much of their work outside my direct view.
I need the peer evaluation to not seem threatening to the students, and I don't want it to generate ill feeling among them.
To make the problem a bit harder, I don't want to divide up the work among the team members myself as I think that would inhibit their learning to be a team. The team itself is responsible for managing its work. Ideally, however, I hold each responsible for the team effort.