Peer educators in learning assistance programs: Best practices for new programs

Abstract

Peer educators have a critical role to play in the delivery of a wide variety of important programs on college campuses. Nowhere is this more evident than in learning assistance programs. These programs, typically housed in a learning center or learning assistance office, include tutoring and mentoring and often take the form of individual and group support in study skills, note-taking, writing and math skills. There has also been a growing use of peer educators in collaborative learning programs, such as Supplemental Instruction. These programs bring students together to learn course content with one another. While any group of students can meet together to study for an exam, results are much higher when the groups are focused and structured (Arendale, 2005). A good first step in beginning a program is examining the major peer learning programs that are used by colleges across the U.S. There are four commonly implemented and well-validated peer learning programs in higher education in the U.S., with both unique features and common operating principles: Emerging Scholars Program, Peer-led Team Learning, Structured Learning Assistance, and Supplemental Instruction.