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Students Helping Students: Improving

Performance Through Peer

LeadersFebruary 8, 2012

Session Goals & Objectives

Outline appropriate opportunities to supplement undergraduate instruction with peer mentoring,

Describe the educational needs of students who serve as undergraduate peer leaders, and

Identify resources available for supporting undergraduate peer leaders.

A Vision for Undergraduate Education

VT Experience(from A Vision for Undergraduate Education at

Virginia Tech)

Freshman Year—Awareness “Each incoming student will be given an opportunity to have another student,

most likely a junior, serve as his/her student advocate.” Sophomore Year—Service

“Students will have an opportunity to participate in workshops and seminars to train them in mentorship and communication. This training will help them to become student advocates for freshmen (mentored by juniors) and sophomores (mentored by seniors) within their major or in a closely aligned field.”

Junior Year—Mentoring “Students will begin to apply their growing knowledge and experience base to

help those who are new to the Virginia Tech community, including transfer students. They will tutor, offer suggestions for courses and instructors, and generally provide a welcoming environment by assisting their peers.”

Senior Year—Leadership “There will be more connections to the community as well as to local, national,

and global industries through internships and other hands-on experiences.”

Learner-Centered Pedagogy

(from A Vision for Undergraduate Education at Virginia Tech)

Objective 1a. Improve academic advising and establish a formal peer-mentoring program for 1st and 2nd year students.

Justification : Of the hundreds of student characteristics examined, the factor most highly correlated with student success in college is the quality and quantity of relationships students had with each other and with their faculty (Astin, 1997). In recent surveys carried out by the Student Government Association (SGA) and the university Commission on the Curriculum for Liberal Education (UCCLE), academic advising was identified as one of the most critical areas that need immediate attention. While some departments and colleges do an outstanding work in advising their students, others struggle to meet student needs in a consistent manner. Increasing the number of knowledgeable faculty and staff advisors as well as student peers will create a more intellectually stimulating, enriching, and satisfying environment to enhance the undergraduate experience at Virginia Tech.

Approach: Create a peer-mentoring program and provide a student advocate for entering students with a long term goal of reaching most students

Background on Mentoring

Mentoring is ‘‘a formalized process whereby a more knowledgeable and experienced person actuates a supportive role of overseeing and encouraging reflection and learning within a less experienced and knowledgeable person, so as to facilitate that persons’ career and personal development’’ (Roberts, 2000, p. 162)

The word ‘‘mentor’’ comes from Greek mythology. In the Odyssey, the main character, Odysseus, invites his friend, Mentor, to help him prepare to fight in the Trojan War, and Mentor serves as a trusted advisor who guides Odysseus’s development (Miller, 2002)

Related Research

In a study with Latino college freshmen, researchers found that those partnered with upper division or graduate students showed improvement in psychosocial factors that underlie academic performance and were less likely than unmentored students be classified as at risk for poor academic outcomes (Phinney, Torres Campos, Padilla Kallemeyn, & Kim, 2011).

In a study of peer-led team learning in general chemistry, researchers found that students who participated in Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL) outperformed non-PLTL students on every academic outcome with the exception of the mid-term grade (Hockings, DeAngelis, & Frey, 2008).

In an extensive review of literature on mentoring college students, Crisp and Cruz (2009) found only two studies that failed to find entirely positive results, but even those found a significant effect on higher grades(Rodger & Tremblay, 2003) and satisfaction with college (Strayhorn & Terrell, 2007).

First-Year Experience

Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences piloted new first-year-experience course (ALS 2984)

First-year students divided into groups of five to eight

Each group was assigned a peer leader, a returning student (sophomore, junior, or senior).

Peer Leaders

Peer leaders assigned two or three groups each and told they had two overarching responsibilities: 1. Welcome, orient, and mentor first-year students as they transition to

life at Virginia Tech, and

2. Assist student groups with managing their assignments for ALS 2984: CALS First Year Seminar.

The peer leaders were all volunteers but did earn academic credit from a one-credit seminar Textbook: Students Helping Students: A Guide for Peer Educators on

College Campuses

Peer leaders collectively led a class session on academic success for the ALS 2984 course, maintained regular communication with their assigned students, and documented their reflections on the experience in the form of a weekly blog.

Comments from Peer Leaders

“I definitely felt like the students gained a lot of perspective on how college life is. When we were presenting, I felt like maybe some of the students seemed a bit uninterested and slightly confused as to why the peer leaders were holding a presentation about this. However, after going through the questions that the students from my group put up, I felt like we made a pretty solid presentation. Some of the stuff we were presenting on seems obvious but I forgot what it is like to be a freshman. Some of the stuff we know being here for 3-4 years is not as apparent to freshman students.”

“I can say that this exercise was a learning experience for all of us.”

Comments from Peer Leaders

“For next year’s peer leaders, I think the planning process needs to start much sooner… There is a lot involved by being a peer leader and it’s hard to discuss that in a one hour block right in the middle of the actual freshmen class.”

“I believe now that we have gone through this once, there is a better understanding of what is expected of the peer leaders so they know exactly what they are getting into before they decide to be a Peer Leader.”

Comments from Protégés

“I thought it was a great thing to do and they should keep doing it for next year. I felt that they were very helpful with the transition from high school to college because they have already been here at tech for a while and understand what we were going through. The personal story's and advice were the best part.”

“She provided us information and was always willing to help when availability meshed together. I believe the class would not be effective with out peer leaders, they provide encouragement since they were recently in our position.”

Comments from Protégés

“I enjoyed having the peer leaders because they have been in our shoes recently and can relate to what we have going on.”

“I thought they all did an awesome job and I especially liked the parts of this seminar where they talked about personal experiences, whether it be with how to study or with extra curriculars!”

“The peer leaders were important to help connect everyone to organize meetings and to answer any questions we had.”

Principles of Peer Leadership Course

Proposal

This course is designed to assist students in becoming a peer leader in a university environment. Students will examine theories and basic principles associated with being a positive influence on fellow students, as well as develop skills utilized to motivate peers in teamwork-based scenarios. Students will regularly meet with a Virginia Tech faculty/staff advisor for recitation assignments.

Principles of Peer Leadership Course

Proposal

Upon successful program completion, peer leaders will: Develop awareness and knowledge in leading groups effectively Practice leadership and team-building skills with peer groups Implement the concepts of developing and maintaining a

community Utilize developed skills in a leadership role at Virginia Tech in

promoting human development/learning among students. Identify challenges and opportunities associated with leading

peers Develop and/or enhance personal skills in leadership through

critical reflection. Explore the relationships between ethics, leadership and

followership

Principles of Peer Leadership Course

Proposal

What would you

include?

VT Experience(from A Vision for Undergraduate Education at

Virginia Tech)

Freshman Year—Awareness

Sophomore Year—Service

Junior Year—Mentoring

Senior Year—Leadership

Review & Reflect

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Thank you!