Providing Students with More Support and Guidance with Fewer Teaching Assistants

Author #1

Abstract

The fourth-year undergraduate course “Peer Tutoring in Chemical Biology” was created in 2009 to provide students with theoretical and practical experience with teaching and mentoring second-year undergraduate chemical biology students enrolled in the “Inquiry for Chemical Biology” course. The peer tutoring course is capped at five students and requires students to submit a written application and subsequently obtain permission from the instructor. The course appeals to senior undergraduate chemical biology students who want to develop/refine their teaching and mentorship abilities, and who genuinely have a passion for helping others. Peer tutors develop and deliver presentations, write self-reflections, discuss assigned readings on a variety of mentoring topics, mark oral and written work, advise students during projects, and most importantly, serve as positive role models for the incoming chemical biology students. Students enrolled in the peer tutoring course are evaluated on their presentations, reflective statements, participation, interaction with students, and on the quality of feedback they provide on oral and written work. The format of the peer tutoring course is not discipline-specific and has the potential to be adapted to a variety of courses and situations. Also, some aspects of the course such as the assigned readings, weekly discussions, and self-reflections could be implemented as training for teaching assistants. The work presented will provide a detailed overview of the peer tutoring course and how it has evolved over the past four years. Advantages of using peer tutors in the course as opposed to teaching assistants will also be discussed.

 
Jul 9th, 11:45 AM

Providing Students with More Support and Guidance with Fewer Teaching Assistants

PAB 148

The fourth-year undergraduate course “Peer Tutoring in Chemical Biology” was created in 2009 to provide students with theoretical and practical experience with teaching and mentoring second-year undergraduate chemical biology students enrolled in the “Inquiry for Chemical Biology” course. The peer tutoring course is capped at five students and requires students to submit a written application and subsequently obtain permission from the instructor. The course appeals to senior undergraduate chemical biology students who want to develop/refine their teaching and mentorship abilities, and who genuinely have a passion for helping others. Peer tutors develop and deliver presentations, write self-reflections, discuss assigned readings on a variety of mentoring topics, mark oral and written work, advise students during projects, and most importantly, serve as positive role models for the incoming chemical biology students. Students enrolled in the peer tutoring course are evaluated on their presentations, reflective statements, participation, interaction with students, and on the quality of feedback they provide on oral and written work. The format of the peer tutoring course is not discipline-specific and has the potential to be adapted to a variety of courses and situations. Also, some aspects of the course such as the assigned readings, weekly discussions, and self-reflections could be implemented as training for teaching assistants. The work presented will provide a detailed overview of the peer tutoring course and how it has evolved over the past four years. Advantages of using peer tutors in the course as opposed to teaching assistants will also be discussed.