Gloria Nam
Professor Fiore
ENG 101
February 9, 2015

Unit 1: Questions of Place & Intro to Academic Writing
“Responding—Really Responding—to Other Student’s Writing,” by Richard Straub

150-word response
Straub does a great job on performing exigence and capturing the reader’s attention because his audience is mainly students; many students have written essays or need help on peer-editing. I really enjoyed his format, dividing his thoughts into sections but also naming those sections with questions students normally have. Also, giving examples to his advice was very helpful in order for the audience to grab a sense of what he is trying to say. In conclusion, I admired the way he focused on trying to get the editor to step into the writer’s shoes because I believe that is the main issue when editing other people’s writing, especially for me. Another thing I liked was how Straub suggested to sound like yourself and not try so hard to sound like the professor in order to give off a good impression. Therefore, Straub’s suggestions were very helpful for me and I will definitely keep his advice in mind when responding to other student’s writing.

Summary
Straub manages to answer the many common questions students have when responding/editing other student’s writing. His main points are focusing on what your goals are when peer-editing, how and what to address in your comments, and understanding the writer’s thoughts. In order for the student to easily understand what he is trying to suggest, Straub uses normally short, brief sentences and simple word choice.

3 Discussion Questions 1. After reading, how would your skills improve on responding to other student’s writing? 2. Was there anything you disagreed with or thought Straub should have elaborated more? If so, what? 3. Which point stuck out to you most and why?