PEER-TO-PEER APPROACH Paola Pupilli Susanna Plazzi

PEER-TO-PEER APPROACH It can be traced back to Aristotle’s use of archons, or student leaders Implemented in G.B. and France in the 19th century Over the past 30-40 years, peer teaching has become increasingly popular in conjunction with mixed ability classes History

PEER-TO-PEER APPROACH A two-way, reciprocal learning activity: from independent to mutual learning; It involves the sharing of knowledge, ideas and experience between the partecipants; It offers an opportunity to learn from each other =mutually beneficial; It gives more practice in taking responsability for own learning by learning how to learn; Needs to be “formalized” and not unsystematical Definition

WHO ARE THE PEERS IN PEER LEARNING - PEER TUTORING NOT TEACHERS Nor experts, although advanced students take on an instructional role (limited) They may have considerable/little experience and expertise They share the status as fellow learners They do not have power over each other thanks to their position! Actors

PEER-TO-PEER APPROACH Peer learning activities can help: create an environment for cooperative learning; increase students’ engagement with the material provided; give students greater personal responsibility over the material provided; work on communication skills and teamwork. Positive

PEER-TO-PEER APPROACH Peer learning activities normally result in: team-building spirit and more supportive relationships; greater psychological well-being, social competence, communication skills and self-esteem; higher achievement and greater productivity in terms of learning outcomes. Positive Emotional considerations

PEER-TO-PEER RESULTS Researches indicate that: Direct interaction between students promotes active learning. Tutor students reinforce their own learning by instructing others. Students feel more comfortable and open when interacting with a peer. Peers and students share a similar discourse, allowing for greater understanding. Teachers receive more time to focus on the next lesson Peer teaching is a financially efficient alternative to hiring more staff members Positive

PEER-TO-PEER APPROACH Some objections have been raised: waste of precious class-time; need of expert teachers, not other students; parental concerns; feelings of inferiority and lack of confidentiality; 5. encourage the presence of “freeloaders”. Negative

PEER-TO-PEER APPROACH A.Senior students tutor junior students (traditional model: peer teaching*) *Researches suggest that the teaching/tutoring model is the most common way of understanding how students assist each other B.Same year students form partnerships to assist each other with both course content and personal concerns (innovative learning cells: peer learning in groups) Models

PEER-TO-PEER APPROACH Both models put emphasis on the LEARNING PROCESS, including the emotional support that learners offer each other, as much as the learning task itself. However, THE ROLES OF STUDENTS AND TEACHERS (A) fixed (B) undefined or may change during the learning experience Models

HOW TO EMPLOY P2P APPROACH IN THE CLASSROOM BE SURE YOUR TUTORS ARE TRAINED Check their requirements Match tutors to tutees Use role-playing and modeling (explain tutoring procedures, role-play how to praise and correct their peers) Strategies A

HOW TO EMPLOY P2P APPROACH IN THE CLASSROOM USE GROUP STRATEGIES BUZZ GRPS: 1 problem/4-5SS/20’ discussion= one S presents the findings to the class SOLUTION AND CRITIC GRPS: one grp is assigned a topic for a tutorial/ the other grps are “critics”= offer comments and evaluate the presentation TEACH-WRITE-DISCUSS: 1 problem/ SS have to answer questions and justify their answers/ SS compare their answers with each other’s/whole class discussion examines the set of answers that are acceptable. Strategies A

HOW TO EMPLOY P2P APPROACH IN THE CLASSROOM EMPHASIZE THE IMPORTANCE OF ACTIVE LEARNING By promoting opportunities for SS to formulate their own questions, discuss issues, explain their viewpoints, engage in cooperative learning Strategies A

HOW TO EMPLOY P2P APPROACH IN THE CLASSROOM EXPLAIN INSTRUCTIONAL SCAFFOLDING Tutor students should prepare peers for independent demonstration since tutees should reach a point when they can perform a new task on their own. Instructional scaffolding (gradually reducing tutor’s influence on the tutee’s) is what tutors need to learn before providing it to tutees. Strategies A

HOW TO EMPLOY P2P APPROACH IN THE CLASSROOM EXPLAIN HOW TO PROVIDE FEEDBACK POSITIVE VERBAL FEEDBACK CORRECTIVE FEEDBACK Strategies A

HOW TO EMPLOY P2P APPROACH IN THE CLASSROOM USE A REWARD SYSTEM to encourage participation and on-task behaviour Raffle tickets (issued by the teacher who supervises all activities) Digital badge (peer badges) https://www.hastac.org/blogs/kyphilosopher/2014/01/30/4-benefits-using-badges-classroom Digital badge form (example from Duke University/groups of 4): https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B0P_OrPa9PnxUUJlWEFYTjREbEU/edit?pli=1 • …………. Strategies A

PEER LEARNING in GROUPS SS can learn how to work with others. SS can learn why groups make better decisions than individuals. SS can learn how groups work productively. 2. Students can see how different perspectives, constructive deliberation, questioning, and critical analysis can result in better solutions and performance. 3. Group work helps students learn how to work with people outside their circle of friends, including those who have different backgrounds and experiences. They can even learn how to work with those who disagree with them Model B

Peer-to-peer strategies 1. First of all, create a cooperative atmosphere in the classroom. 2. Start by doing small group projects before creating reciprocal pairings, where one student will serve as the tutor and the other as the tutee, and then they switch roles. 3. Another method is assigning one student to teach a particular topic from the course to a small group, and switching that leadership role for various sections of the material. Strategies B

Peer-to-peer strategies Example: have SS become the “experts” when visiting a location/exhibition/company…. Give them materials to research about the city/piece of art/place….referring to what is being studied in the course. SS should be allowed to express their expertise in their own way (storytelling, acting out, speech…) Strategies B

Peer-to-peer strategies In pairs, have SS read a passage/article together, actively discuss and talk about it. Then, individually, they give a retelling of the story Results will be significantly higher than having SS do the same activity by themselves! Strategies B

Peer-to-peer strategies In order to minimise freeloading*: peer ratings to assess individual performance of team members a ‘post-test’ There will then be two levels of accountability: the individual and the group are those team members who fail to fulfil their team responsibilities, but are awarded the same (high) grade as their more responsible teammates! Strategies B

“One reason that peer learning can be so effective is the amount of one-on-one discussion that can happen in a peer-to-peer scenario that may not be available in a classroom. In addition, students in the teaching role must summarize what they’ve learned, and express their understanding when they are asked questions. Likewise, the student in the learning role evaluates their peer’s understanding and asks questions involving critical thinking, possibly in a more daring way than if they were questioning the professor .” Prof. D. Boud, 2002