Generative AI and Peer Feedback in Collaborative Academic Writing
Inovação Pedagógica no Ensino Superior
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25767/se.v34i1.42564Keywords:
aprendizagem colaborativa; feedback entre pares; escrita académica; inteligência artificial generativa; avaliação formativa.Abstract
This article presents an innovative pedagogical practice developed in higher education, which combines collaborative learning, peer feedback, and critical integration of generative artificial intelligence in the promotion of academic writing. The intervention took place in the History of Science and Techniques course (1st year of the Multimedia Engineering Degree, ISTEC Porto), in the 2nd semester of the 2024/2025 academic year, involving 22 students organised into collaborative groups.
The activity focused on the preparation of scientific articles, including successive stages of production, peer review, support from Generative Artificial Intelligence chatbots (ChatGPT, NotebokLM, Manus, Claude.ai, Grok, Gemini, etc.) and critical reflection through e-portfolios. The pedagogical process included: (i) initial writing of abstracts (V1); (ii) critical peer review (V2); (iii) reformulation with generative AI (GAI) support (V3); and (iv) final validation with teacher feedback and integration into individual reflective e-portfolios (V4).
The results, obtained from an exploratory analysis of reflective reports, show gains in writing quality, critical thinking, self-regulation of learning, a high degree of satisfaction with the peer feedback process, and the ethical use of GAI. The experience shows promise as a contribution to authentic formative assessment practices and the development of academic and digital skills in higher education. Its progressive integration into collaborative teaching practices is recommended, with ongoing training for teachers and students.
The main limitation is the small number of participants in this exploratory study. For future implementations, it is recommended that training support for teachers and students be strengthened and that structured and monitored peer feedback models be adopted, enhancing their impact on the development of critical thinking and learning.
References
Banihashem et al. (2024). Feedback sources in essay writing: peergenerated or AI-generated feedback? International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education (2024) 21:23 https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-024-00455-4
Bruffee, K. A. (1984). Collaborative Learning and the «Conversation of Mankind». College English, 46(7), 635–652. https://doi.org/10.2307/376924
Bruffee, K. A. (1999). Collaborative Learning: Higher Education, Interdependence, and the Authority of Knowledge. Second Edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2715 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218-4363; Tel: 410-516-6900; Tel: 800-537-5487 (Toll Free); Fax: 410-516-6998; Web site: http://www.
Calvo, R. A., O’Rourke, S. T., Jones, J., Yacef, K., & Reimann, P. (2011). Collaborative Writing Support Tools on the Cloud. IEEE Transactions on Learning Technologies, 4(1), 88–97.
Campo, L., Galindo-Domínguez, H., Bezanilla, M.-J., Fernández-Nogueira, D., & Poblete, M. (2023). Methodologies for Fostering Critical Thinking Skills from University Students’ Points of View. Education Sciences, 13(2), 132. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13020132
Dillenbourg, P. (1999). What do you mean by collaborative learning? (p. 1). Oxford: Elsevier. https://telearn.hal.science/hal-00190240
Double, K.S., McGrane, J.A., & Hopfenbeck, T.N. (2020). The Impact of Peer Assessment on Academic Performance: A Meta-analysis of Control Group Studies. Educational Psychology Review 32(1). DOI:10.1007/s10648-019-09510-3
Ennis, Robert, H. (2015). The nature of critical thinking: An outline of critical thinking dispositions and habilites. Presentation at the Sixth International Conference on Thinking at MIT, Cambridge, MA [internet] 2011
Facione, PA (2020).Critical Thinking: What It is and Why It Counts. Advancing Thinking Worldwide.
Facione, P. A. (2024). Critical thinking: What it is and why it counts (2020 update ed.). Insight Assessment. https://www.insightassessment.com
Ferris, D. R., & Hedgcock, J. S. (2005). Teaching ESL Composition: Purpose, Process, and Practice (2nd ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates
Floridi, L., Cowls, J., Beltrametti, M., Chatila, R., Chazerand, P., Dignum, V., Luetge, C., Madelin, R., Pagallo, U., Rossi, F., Schafer, B., Valcke, P., & Vayena, E. (2018). AI4People—An Ethical Framework for a Good AI Society: Opportunities, Risks, Principles, and Recommendations. Minds and Machines, 28(4), 689–707. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11023-018-9482-5
Guizani, S., Mazhar, T., Shahzad, T., Ahmad, W., Bibi, A., & Hamam, H. (2025). A systematic literature review to implement large language model in higher education: Issues and solutions. Discover Education, 4(1), 35. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44217-025-00424-7
Jaramillo Gómez, D. L., Álvarez Maestre, A. J., Parada Trujillo, A. E., Pérez Fuentes, C. A., Bedoya Ortiz, D. H., & Sanabria Alarcón, R. K. (2025). Determining Factors for the Development of Critical Thinking in Higher Education. Journal of Intelligence, 13(6), 59. https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence13060059
Jasmadi, Jasmadi, Saddam Saddam, and Lasri Lasri. 2024. Critical thinking: An analytical study on the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) usage on students at Al Washliyah Darussalam University, Banda Aceh. Sekumpul: Journal of Multidisciplinary Education Sciences 2: 25–32. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Latifi, S., & Noroozi, O. (2021). Supporting argumentative essay writing through an online supported peer-review script. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 58(5), 501–511. https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2021.1961097
Liu, N.-F., & Carless, D. (2006). Peer feedback: The learning element of peer assessment. Teaching in Higher Education, 11(3), 279–290. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562510600680582
Lu, Y., & Li, H. (2023). Generative AI in education: Opportunities and challenges for formative assessment. Computers & Education: Artificial Intelligence, 4, 100123
Nguyen, Andy, Mario Kremantzis, Aniekan Essien, Ilias Petrounias, and Samira Hosseini. 2024. Enhancing student engagement through artificial intelligence (AI): Understanding the basics, opportunities, and challenges. Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice 21: 1–13. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Nicol, D. J., & Macfarlane‐Dick, D. (2006). Formative assessment and self‐regulated learning: A model and seven principles of good feedback practice. Studies in Higher Education, 31(2), 199–218. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075070600572090
Palomares Ruiz. (2011). El modelo docente universitario y el uso de nuevas metodologías en la enseñanza, aprendizaje y evaluación. Revista de Educación,355. Mayo-Agosto 2011, pp. 591-604. DOI: 10-4438/1988-592X-RE-2011-355-038
Panadero, E., Jonsson, A., & Alqassab, M. (2018). Providing Formative Peer Feedback: What Do We Know? Em A. A. Lipnevich & J. K. Smith (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Instructional Feedback (pp. 409–431). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316832134.023
Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2007). Critical thinking: The art of socratic questioning. Journal of Developmental Education, 31(1), 36-37. https://www.jstor.org/stable/42775632
Sadler, D. R. (1989). Formative assessment and the design of instructional systems. Instructional Science, 18, 119–144.
Stefani, L., & Nicol, D. (1996). From Teacher to Facilitator of Collaborative Enquiry. Em Facing Up to Radical Change in Universities and Colleges. Routledge.
Tanaka, J., & Gilliland, B. (2016). Critical Thinking Instruction in English for Academic Purposes Writing Courses: A Dialectical Thinking Approach. TESOL Journal 8(3) DOI:10.1002/tesj.291
Tigelaar, D. E., Dolmans, D. H., Wolfhagen, I. H., & van der Vleuten, C. P. (2021). Quality issues in e-portfolio development: A review of the literature. Medical Teacher, 43(2), 128–135.
van den Berg, I., Admiraal, W., & Pilot, A. (2006). Design principles and outcomes of peer assessment in higher education. Studies in Higher Education, 31(3), 341–356. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075070600680836
van den Berg, Geesje, and Elize du Plessis ( 2023). ChatGPT and generative AI: Possibilities for its contribution to lesson planning, critical thinking and openness in teacher education. Education Sciences 13: 998. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef
Wei, Y., & Liu, D. (2024). Incorporating peer feedback in academic writing: A systematic review of benefits and challenges. Frontiers in Psychology, 15. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1506725
Yang, X. (2023). A Historical Review of Collaborative Learning and Cooperative Learning. TechTrends, 67(4), 718–728. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-022-00823-9
UNESCO (2024, atualizado em abril de 2025). Guia para a IA generativa na educação e na pesquisa, UNESCO. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000390241
Valenzuela J, Nieto AM & Muñoz C. (2014). Motivación y disposiciones: enfoques alternativos para explicar el desempeño de habilidades de pensamiento crítico. Revista Electrónica de Investigación Educativa [internet] 2014. 16(3): 16-32. http://redie.uabc.mx/vol16no3/contenido-valnieto.html
Zhao X., Liu X. (2022). Sustaining faculty development through visiting scholar programmes: A transformative learning perspective. Sustainability, 14(1), 525.
Zhu, X., & Carless, D. (2020). Dialogue within peer feedback processes: Clarifying student peer feedback literacy. Assessment
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Luísa Orvalho, Ana Francisca Monteiro
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
- The opinions expressed by the authors are their exclusive responsibility.
- The journal reserves the right to make the original, normative changes, spelling and grammar, in order to maintain the standard language of worship, while respecting the style of the authors.
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License (BY-NC-SA 4.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
PRIVACY STATEMENT
The names and email addresses entered in this journal site will be used exclusively for the stated purposes of this journal and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other party.
