Peer Tutoring: What Can I Get From It?
If you’ve ever stayed up late desperately trying to understand how to balance chemical equations the night before an exam, know you’re not alone! I’ve certainly been a victim of them too. Luckily for me, on that day, I had friends who were able to understand this concept better than I could, and I was able to get it before the big day.
This is an example of peer tutoring — something truly magical if you need to discover new techniques or perspectives that will help you get a grasp of some of the things you just cannot seem to make sense of on your own.
If you are interested in becoming a peer tutor or are considering seeking help from peer tutors, join us as we answer the question: who would benefit from peer tutoring?
There are two main parties in peer tutoring, the learner and the tutor. Whether you are one or the other, in this article, you can find out how peer tutoring benefits you and me!
What is peer tutoring?
Peer tutoring is when somebody (usually a student) seeks help from a person of the same or similar age or position to gain a clearer understanding of a specific subject, either offered by organizations within an academic institution or external organizations. In this process within schools, teachers usually pair students who demonstrate a deep understanding of the subject with those who need help understanding some concepts.
How does it help the learners?
Peer tutoring has become an increasingly popular learning strategy, known to enhance not only academic abilities, but develop social skills for the learners. It also increases a student’s interest and confidence towards the topic, thus increasing their motivation to master it. It exposes students to different styles and strategies of learning, giving more importance to personal learning styles and preferences. For example, one might prefer a more interactive style that requires feedback to clarify learning gaps, something harder to achieve in a classroom setting, but easier to achieve in peer tutoring.
How does it help the peer tutors?
Peer tutors benefit from peer tutoring the same way as the learners as they are able to develop their social skills, allowing them to foster positive relationships with their peers. Additionally, because peer tutors can usually be contacted by their fellow students through organized peer tutoring programs either within or outside the school, it can be considered an extracurricular activity that can be added to your college applications and resumes! In fact, this is an activity that garners the attention of admission officers because it shows admission teams that applicants are eager to support their community and demonstrate positive leadership skills.
How does it help organizations?
Just like Wave Learning Festival, other organizations that provide peer tutoring opportunities are able to reach a wider network of students that need that extra help in strengthening their knowledge of concepts in specific subjects or topics. With the help of both learners and peer tutors, we are able to reach our goal in providing knowledge accessible for everyone.
With this wider network, we are also able to reach students who want to help other students through peer tutoring, making peer tutors more accessible for anyone from anywhere too.
Is peer tutoring effective?
No two students are the same, so the strategies you would use to understand a topic you feel you lack knowledge in could be different than the one your seatmate uses. Evidence for Learning does show that peer tutoring has a positive effect on learning, showing an average positive effect equivalent to approximately five additional months’ progress within one academic year.
In conclusion
Peer tutoring always has something in store for you!
Whether you need help or want to help your peers conquer seemingly mind-boggling topics, peer tutoring is one of the best ways to do it. It has something in store for everyone with nothing to lose but knowledge and friendships to gain.
Written by Isabella Severino, Press & Written Media team
Wave Learning Festival is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing free, live seminars, tutoring, college application help, career mentorship and more. If you would like to learn more about Wave Learning Festival, check out our website or contact us at hello@wavelf.org. Please consider contributing to Wave’s mission of making education accessible to all.