Assignment 1.3: Peer Review of Cheka’s Definitions

Title: Peer Review of Cheka’s Definitions – Assignment 1.3

Date: February 12, 2023

To: Cheka Duheme

From: Byung-Sun Park

Peer Review / Term: Pluricentric

Link to Definitions: https://blogs.ubc.ca/engl30199c2022w2/2023/02/08/1-3-definitions-of-pluricentric/

Thank you for writing the three different definitions of the chosen complex term for the assignment of lesson 1:3. Please check the review of the assignment and suggestions for revisions below.

First Impression:

This document is well-organized with a clear structure of all requirements including visuals and citations. Overall, the document is complete with all three different definitions of the technical term “Pluricentric”, but the parenthetical definition needs to be corrected. The tone in the document is professional and formal, but some sentences contain personal pronouns, which should be replaced by specific nouns. Please check below for detailed suggestions.

Organization:

• The document includes a clear introduction of the assignment with the intended audiences and reading situation.
• The document is well-organized with bolded headings for each section and italic subheadings of the expanded definition.
• A citation for a visual needs to be directly located under the title of the figure. Please check the example on page 401 of the course textbook.
• The organization of the document could be improved by including a short concluding paragraph after an expanded definition.

Expression:

• Sentences are clear and concise enough for audiences to read and understand materials easily.
• The tone is appropriate for the settings of the assignment; it is professional and formal.
• Some sentences contain first-person pronouns. For example:
  • “Therefore, we can determine that language is “pluricentric” by sociolinguistics standards.”
  • The document should avoid personal pronouns in sentences.
  • All personal pronounces used in the document can be replaced by ‘readers’ or ‘audiences’.

Content:

• The document contains all requirements of the assignment:
  • A detailed introduction with intended readers and situation
  • A parenthetical definition
  • A sentence definition
  • An expanded definition with four types
    • A visual
  • A list of works cited

Definitions:

• The document includes all three different definitions of the complex technical term “Pluricentric”: a parenthetical definition, a sentence definition, and an expanded definition.
• A parenthetical definition needs to be corrected:
  • Although a concise definition of the term is provided, it is not an appropriate type for a parenthetical definition.
  • According to page 397 of the textbook, a parenthetical definition is used “to clarify the meaning of the word by using a more familiar synonym or a clarifying phrase in parentheses“.
  • A parenthetical definition of the term should be in parentheses in the sentence where the term is used.
• A sentence definition of the term is complete and correct; it begins by stating the term and provides a concise additional explanation in the next sentence.
• An expanded definition used at least four expansion strategies including at least one visual; each expansion strategy is appropriate for the chosen technical term.

Visuals:

• A visual is appropriate for the definition to help readers clearly understand and visualize the analysis of the parts of the term.
• Texts in a visual are too small and the resolution of a visual is somewhat low for readers with poor eyesight.

Grammar and Typos:

• No grammatical errors or typos found in the document.

Works Cited:

• At least three outside references are consulted, and all works are correctly cited in MLA8.

Concluding Comments:

This document is well-organized with all required fields of the assignment, and all three different definitions are clearly introduced for readers who do not have backgrounds in linguistics. Although this document is already well-written, it can be improved with the following corrections:

• Correcting a parenthetical definition of the term according to the textbook.
• Replacing all personal pronouns in the document with proper nouns.
• Including a citation of a visual right below the title of a visual.
• Improving the size and the resolution of a visual
• Including a short conclusion paragraph after an expanded definition.

Thank you for taking the time to read my review of the document. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Thanks.