Facilitating the social and academic learning process: Mentoring students in macro and micro environments

Presented by: Lindy KimminsCo-authored: Mark E. OliverConference: Association for Academic Language and Learning

The importance of context

The Learning Context

Some of the challenges that lead to the intervention:

University Context- The distance between faculty and students (time constraints upon staff)- Focus on distance learners- Multimodal study patterns- Constraints on students (e.g. lack of time due to work commitments)

Residential College Context- High proportion of first generation university students, usually from rural

backgrounds- Financial constraints upon students- Social interaction tended to involve avoidance of academic

responsibilities

What we know about students …(Scott 2008)

the presence of a supportive peer group consistently accessible and responsive staff clear management of student expectations, including active briefings on

‘how things work around here’ * prompt and effective management of student queries ‘just-in-time’ and ‘just-for-me’ transition support, including the use of self-

teaching and orientation materials written by students from a similar background who have successfully managed the transition, on how they did it *

use of a coherent, responsive, flexible, relevant and clear course design— a design that uses a variety of interactive, practice-oriented and problem-based learning methods

efficient, conveniently accessed and responsive administrative, IT, library and student support systems; all working together to support the university’s operation and

relevant, consistent and integrated assessment with prompt and constructive feedback’.

Conceptual Overview for Intervention:Responding to the contextual and learner factors

‘There is nothing so practical as good theory.’ Kurt Lewin

Teaching/Learning Distance

Context for InterventionThe Learning ContextStudent factors

TeachingFaculty

LearningStudents

Transactional distance between teacher and learner (Moore 1980)

Information flow unidirectional (information delivery model of education)

How do students cope with the gap?

TeachingFaculty

LearningStudents

How do students respond to this distance?

How do students learn?

Through social interaction, observation of social models, responding to cues from the environment.

Social Cognitive Theory

• Social Cognitive Theory (Bandura 1982, 1997) stresses the idea that much human learning occurs in a social environment.

• Learning occurs either enactively through actual doing, or vicariously by observing models;

• Peer models can be effective sources of reinforcement for learning (e.g. content, strategies, goals, etc); and

• Observing peer models perform a task well can raise the observer’s self-efficacy (which researchers hypothesize as having diverse effects on achievement)

(Shunk 2004)

How to create opportunities for social learning?

TeachingFaculty

LearningStudents

Learning Communities are a comprehensive pedagogical strategy that has been utilized in residential communities in the USA. Learning communities provide macro social communities for learning.

What is a Learning Community?

• Smith et al (2004) defined learning communities as a curricular approach that intentionally clusters two or more courses around a common them, and consists of a common cohort of students.

• Learning communities provide opportunities for social learning to occur between students with shared interests.

• Learning communities have be established for a variety of disciplines (e.g. pre-service teachers) and for topics (e.g. sustainable environments).

• A major focus of learning communities is the creation of cohorts of students, which then act as support mechanisms.

Learning communities may not reduce the transactional distance …

TeachingFaculty

Learning CommunitiesStudents

Implementation of learning communities can sometimes be inhibited due to lack of faculty involvement (e.g. due to time), and lack of relevance (e.g. need to embed academic content to promote relevance for participation).

What mechanisms can be used to cross the divide and solve implementation issues?

The Meet-Up Program:Providing micro opportunities for social learning

‘Meet-up helps students find their way, from students who have already taken the path.’(Meet-up leader, 2011)

Crossing the divide …

TeachingFaculty

Learning CommunitiesStudents

Meet-Up acts as a micro environment, which serves to bridge the divide between student groups (learning communities) and faculty. Meet-Up also provides participants with ‘peer models’ .

CIV1501Meet-Up

LAW1201Meet-Up

NUR2000Meet-Up

What is Meet-Up?

• Run by students for students• Led by trained students who have previously

done well in a course • Interactive informal and fun • Responsive to student needs• Designed to encourage discussion and

develop understanding of course content• Concerned with how to learn as well as what

to learn

Program implementation:Data from the Intervention

Qualitative and quantitative data was collected to evaluate the intervention. Qualitative data will be reported to describe the benefits for students, peer mentors, faculty, and the university. Qualitative data will be presented to demonstrate the improvement in GPA results. The improvement in GPA results cannot be solely attributed to the intervention, however the convergence evidence would suggest that further investigation of the intervention is warranted.

Benefits to students:

• Social networking for 1st year students *• Targeted assistance with course content in a non-threatening environment• Improved academic success *• Enhanced academic skills• Higher student satisfaction with course

support• Increased confidence and self-efficacy

Example:

One thing [Meet–Up leader] said really put me at ease, it was along the lines of ‘last year I had absolutely no idea what I was doing and I got through it and you will too.’  It's such a relief to know that I will be at that same level as [the Meet–Up leaders] next year, that I will be full of the knowledge and understanding that it takes to move through BNUR confidently.

Benefits to leaders:

Develops leadership and communication skills Improves employment opportunities Increases sense of being part of the university

learning community* Develops a sense of person reward for having

contributing to helping other students Enhances understanding of course/program concepts

and contributes to understanding of ‘the big picture’ * Contributes to the development of study strategies

and time management techniques Through mentoring others, Meet-Up leaders are

explicitly conscious of content and learning strategies, which serves to reinforce their own learning.

Examples from 2 leaders S2 2010: It [Meet-Up] definitely increased my confidence and

my understanding of the content. I think it has also given me more uni contacts and built new friendships with students and with course leaders and other staff members.

Skills learned as a Meet-Up leader: o improvement in administrative/organisational skills

with running a small groupo a better understanding of the teacher’s perspective in

trying to develop lesson planso growth in confidence with teaching and facilitating of

group-work in the small group environment o improved planning skills

Benefits to lecturers:

Students feel the lecturer is supportive Students gain academic confidence Leaders provide feedback on the

course design and content Leaders pass on comments from

students on course matters * Can actually reduce workload *

Example:

Meet – Up was: ‘Very rewarding despite my minimal input.

Not only did they [the Leaders] improve my situation, student satisfaction was anecdotally high’.

The Meet - Up leaders provided useful feedback on ‘trouble areas, student perceptions, ideas for activities and improvements to the course’.

Benefits to program and university :

Can reduce fail rates Evidence to the students that the faculty

and university are prepared to provide support

Helps develop USQ’s graduate qualities and skills in students

Helps create a pool of quality post-graduates

c

Example: FIN1101

61 students in total attended Meet-Up sessions ‘Meet-Up facilitated the practical exploration of the

week’s work and its relevance to the overall theme of the course’.

(Phillips, P personal communication, July 22, 2010)

work and its relevance to the overall theme of the course.

Year Enrolments % fail grades2008 89 15.85%2009 99 6.12%2010 88 4.54%

2009 S1 GPA 2009 S2 GPA 2010 S1 GPA

College 1 4.41 3.38 4.71

College 2 4.88 4.63 5.03

College 3 4.65 4.41 4.5

Total 4.65 4.14 4.86

Average GPA for College Students (Intervention in Red)

2009 S2 Number of Returning Students

Number of Courses Failed

2009 S2

2010 S1 Number of Returning Students

Number of Courses

Failed2010 S1

College 1 45 74 78 33

College 2 86 58 136 45

College 3 38 23 59 29

Total 139 155 273 107

Number of Failed Courses

55.5% reduction in the number of failed courses at College 1. 23.0% reduction in the number of failed courses at College 2. 31.0% reduction in the number of failed courses across the 3 Colleges. Increased sample size should have seen an increase in the number of courses failed if all factors were held constant. A reduction in the total number of courses failed with an increased sample size indicates a positive intervention has occurred.

DiscussionWhere to now?

What should a future investigation focus upon? How will further study contribute to current understand of peer learning

programs? Practical implications of the intervention

Further investigation of impact Evaluation data from the intervention suggested that

a positive affect occurred, however further investigation is warranted.

A quasi-experimental (natural groups) study with a pre-post design is currently being planned to study the effects on participants and peer-mentors regarding: Self-efficacy Learning strategy knowledge GPA Learning motivation

Interviews with faculty will also be conducted to evaluate program effectiveness.

Contributing to our understanding of peer learning programs

In Ireland at Dublin City University, researchers found that:

‘Peer assisted learning was highly effective in improving student performance

in the tutored subjects, and in improving progression’ (Parkinson 2009, p. 390). (In this study, a range of attendees were selected from a number of volunteers.)

American research into peer led programs and retention…

Collaborative and co-operative learning give students a voice in their education that ‘enhances both learning and student persistence’ (Tinto 2003, p.10)

Research into peer led programs and retention in Australia …

Enrolment in a PASS program was found to have a positive impact on students’ academic success.

This relationship was found to be stronger for students participating in PASS programs for quantitative subjects.

It was also found to be stronger for students on the lower end of the mark distribution.

Furthermore, given the fact that PASS programs have a larger impact on the academic performance of most students at the lower end of the marks distribution, it is possible to suggest that PASS programs are also of more benefit to students at the cusp of failing university (Birch & Li 2009).

Thank you for attending.Any questions?