The Role of Peer Tutoring in Academic Success
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Peer Tutoring plays a key role in the academic success of Purdue Global students. Peer Tutors are current and successful students here at Purdue Global who have dedicated their time and energy to helping their peers succeed. Now in its third year, the Learning for Success Center currently employs six Peer Tutors who provide tutoring four days a week, working to empower students with the skills they need to succeed in their online learning. Our current Peer Tutors are Kathy Dust, Charles Stephens, Angie Wilson, Paige Phillips, Conrad Murray, and Chaiya Zahara.
Our Peer Tutors find joy and satisfaction in their work. Graduating Peer Tutor Angie Wilson reports that “being a positive in their journey for academic success gave me an amazing feeling.” Paige Phillips asserts that she enjoys being a Peer Tutor because “connecting with people and helping them through something that they need is personally fulfilling.” Charles Stephens adds that “helping people better manage their time and improve their performance towards achieving goals, whether that be an assignment or a class or their degree plan” is an aspect of the work that he enjoys. Kathy Dust enjoys being able to both work and study from home while helping “other students like me.”
Purdue Global students appreciate the assistance from their peers, with 83% rating their experience with a Peer Tutor as excellent and 94% reporting that they would encourage others to use the Learning for Success Center in our feedback surveys. Students find Peer Tutors to be knowledgeable, helpful, and easy to understand, and nearly 90% reported receiving the help they needed by dropping in during the center’s open hours. After a session with Kathy Dust, a student reported that she “was so patient and helpful with my concern. I truly appreciate her calm voice and presence in the midst of what was frustrating for me.” Another student writes that “Angela was very helpful with me about my unit 8 assignment that I’m currently working on, and she gave me a lot of information that I can use.”
Peer Tutors help students with challenges like time management, reading comprehension, study skills, and system navigation. They share learning resources and tools with students and also help them connect directly with a Professional Tutor for content-specific help in subjects including business, math, science, writing, and technology. Meeting with students in video- and mic-enabled private, virtual spaces, Peer Tutors offer social connection, support, empathy, and mentorship.
In addition to serving the needs of students, this role has also helped our Peer Tutors reach their professional goals. Paige recognizes that peer tutoring is helping her professionally, saying: “It provides the student services experience that I need when applying for student affairs positions at a university. I am also working on a master of science degree in higher education with an emphasis in student affairs. This experience is one of my first in the field.” She also finds personal benefits, insisting that “it helps me personally also, as it builds confidence to enter into student services.” Charles Stephens says serving as a Peer Tutor has helped him professionally because it allows him “to continue in the world of mentorship and tutoring in order to better help me with continuing my experience in that area.” Kathy adds that peer tutoring has filled an essential need by providing contact with other Peer Tutors and students.
The Peer Tutors in Learning for Success are an essential part of student success at Purdue Global, and we look forward to growing the center and our staff to further support the student experience.
Until next time, this is Dr. Linscott with another Learning for Success podcast. Happy learning!