Antonia Ypsilanti assigns students to tutor other students

The idea that students can act as tutors is not a new one. There is always an interesting way to better achieve this with a little preparation by teachers and students. I thought it would be a fun way to enhance students learning and teach them how to prepare for exams in groups as well as, to create strong group dynamics beneficial to all parties. 

So, around week 10 of the Research Methods and Statistics unit, I contacted 4-5 students that have the highest marks in the earlier assessed component and asked them if they would be willing to study for the final exams earlier than usual and act as tutors in a group revision session. 

Usually it is best to have groups of 5-6 people, which tutors can handle. In a class of 25 students you will need 5 tutors. If someone does not agree to participate I move to the next highest mark until I have enough tutors to cover the groups. I then book several rooms in Learning & Teaching Commons (study rooms, areas in front or at the back) in collaboration with the librarians. 

Image from: http://www.edtrack.info/

To prepare my "tutors" better, a week earlier I sent them a mock exam, which is a set of exercises that they will need to practice in preparation for the exams. Questions are common among the tutors but I strongly encourage them to find the answers by themselves. One the day the groups are split and parallel sessions take place in an attempt to do the mock exam and answer questions in relation to methodological or statistics issues. During the two-hour revision session, I move around the groups and help them if necessary. I found that tutors create a great atmosphere they provide the rules to the group (e.g., stick to the topic) and they all take learning to their own hands.

I highly suggest it if you haven’t do so already!

Some pitfalls to consider:

• Separation in groups should be done by the lecturers to get a nice mixture of strong and weak studentsThere is going to be some chatting but I found that students are more responsible for their learning when left alone
• Book the rooms in advance
• Do not allow eating or coffees it usually distracts them

Antonia Ypsilanti

Lecturer, Psychology Department