Learning Partnership: The experience of peer tutoring among nursing students

1. Learning Partnership:The experience of peer tutoring among nursing students LOKE, Alice Yuen Chow Lai Wan, Filomena

2. Peer tutoring • Peer tutoring refers to senior learners teaching learners who are studying at the lower level, and can foster a deeper understanding of a subject matter. • (Clarke & Feltham 1990)

3. Benefits of peer tutoring system • Students who engage in interaction with their peers in learning, would be compelled to externalize their thoughts, and make their queries related to topics and subjects explicit.

4. Peer tutors are better than teachers at understanding their problems, are more interested in their lives and personalities, and are less authoritarian, yet more focus on assessment. • (Moust & Schmidet 1994)

5. The situation of peer tutoring provides opportunities to students to discover their inadequacies, to correct misunderstandings, and encourage openness to others’ ideas. • The process of peer tutoring will foster deep approach to learning that may contribute to higher academic achievement.

6. Peer tutoring scheme is popular in mathematics teaching, reading class, teaching of children with autism (Kamps et al 1994), primary schools (Greenwood 91, Kohler & Greenwood 1990), social work and medical education.

7. Study aim Through the incorporation of a peer-tutoring scheme among nursing students: • to facilitate ‘lateral & cooperative learning’ • to improve the depth of understanding in subject matters among students. • to develop interpersonal and life-long learning skills

8. Subjects recruitment • 12 students from year III were recruited as peer tutors • 14 students from year II taking the subject ‘Maternity and Infant Care’ were invited to join the scheme as peer tutees • Participation was voluntary

9. Training Before implementation of peer tutoring system, all student peer tutors received: • Workshop on Peer Tutoring • Manual for Student Peer Tutors

10. Facilitating role of teachers • as a resource person • monitor of peer tutoring activities • provide subject materials • available to help when needed

11. Action research activities • Weekly tutoring sessions through out the term • interim meetings between student tutors and teachers • individual interviews of peer tutors

12. Action research:Weekly tutoring sessions Students were required to record each tutorial session: • including objectives of learning, expectations, discussed subject matters, questions raised, set learning objectives for next tutorial session.

13. Action research:Interim evaluation In the format of a group discussion: • clarification of the role and responsibilities of tutors • identify problems to be solved • identify issues for improvement • evaluate one’s own learning focusing on intellectual and personal development. • resolve any difficulties encountered

14. Issues identified - interim • Tutees do not prepare for sessions • time management • passive in learning • convenient time • suitable venue • role clarification

15. Action research:interview • Individual interview s were conducted at the end of the term to evaluate their learning focusing on intellectual and personal development

16. Data collected • Group interviews • Individual interviews • Students GPA (for comparison) • Reflective journals (mid-term and end of term) • Learning approach questionnaires (pre & post)

17. ResultsGroup and individual interview: Difficulties encountered • Issues identified - interim Benefits (mainly among tutors) • 1. Intellectual gain • 2. Mutuality in learning • 3. Sharpening interpersonal skills • 4. Social gain • 5. Personal growth

18. 1. Intellectual gain • deepening knowledge • more systematic in search for information • acquiring skills in studying for tests and preparing for clinical • theory and practice integration • improve critical thinking ability

19. “I have to revise the subject content well before tutoring, it is embarrassing if I cannot answer their questions” • “she (the tutee) does not know how to ask questions, so I have to read through the subject materials to set objectives for the tutoring session”

20. I become more systematic in learning since I have to organize the materials before hand, and to express myself clearly to help them understand” • “sometimes textbook knowledge cannot answer all our questions, and I have to reflect on my own experience, and I learn to integrate theory and practice”

21. “In order to make it not too dull, I have to use my own clinical experience to illustrate the material that I want to clarify”

22. 2. Mutuality in learning • Seeking answers and information together • sharing of previous clinical experience, an important sources for help for many tutees • tutors gain more than tutees?

23. “when we encountered some practical problems, and I don’t know the answers, we may seek answers to questions separately and share with the answers each others. • “In trying to make the subject more interesting, I seek answers from different resources , such as web-site, peers, and textbooks to find extra information”

24. ‘The questions raised by the tutees stimulate me to look for answers, in the process of trying to explain to them, I learned more about the subject through revision.’ • ‘We both benefited from the experience. I took the opportunity to do my revision’.

25. 3. Sharpening Interpersonal skills • Communication skills • interpersonal conflict management

26. ‘I learned how to ask questions to stimulate thinking, and how to give explanation or answer questions systematically and clearly.’ • “I realized that I become a good listener, and could better understand their problems, since I have just went through the experiences”.

27. “I am more tactful in handling what I used to call ‘stupid’ questions”. • ‘We even rearrange other engagement and have tutorial on Saturday and Sunday. I learn to be more organized’

28. 4. Social gain • expanding circle of friends • share their worries and concerns • Establish mutual sense of trust

29. “It is not easy to know fellow schoolmates from other class, this provide me with opportunity to get to know others and it is nice to have a little sister” • “peer tutoring activities allow me more opportunity to get together with classmates from lower class”

30. We start off with lots of conflicts, but near the end, we are like friends, and she even called me when she has encounter problems (personal as well as academic). • We even talked about our concerns about future job opportunity or why we study in degree nursing program.

31. ‘We are just like friends, and she shared with me her unhappy events in clinical, and trusted me enough in not telling the teachers, and this make me feel that we have developed a trusting and close relationship.’

32. 5. Personal Growth • gaining confidence • reflective thinking • taking active parts in learning, independent • sense of responsibility • sense of belonging • flexible & accommodating, more understanding, ability to listen with patience • maturation

33. “I am more confident and now more ready to ask questions in class” • “Her questions have stimulate me to reflect on many questions that I do not ask before.’ • ‘I reflect on my own performance, and will try to prepare better for next time.’

34. “learning become interesting and fun since they don't feel they are not pressure for tests while reviewing the subject matter” • ‘I learnt that study is not just for passing exam but to gain knowledge’.

35. “I learn to communicate with people, and to deal with problems with flexibility” • ‘I feel the obligation and responsibility to teach and learn. I feel teachers are serious about our learning and that I am part of the team.’

36. ‘I become more independent in learning, I will read before next class, and take responsibility of my own learning.’ • ‘I am now more serious in learning, and take the responsibility in my own learning and take active part in it.’

37. I learn to be more accommodating of ‘immature’ behaviors. I tried to get her back to learning activities with skill.’ • ‘I become more understanding of each others’ needs, and try be more flexible about time arrangement’.

38. ‘She was just like me when I was in that stage, as my own shadow, I will not blame her for being that way, and will guide her to take take responsibilities in leaning, be more active, be more series, and broaden own perspectives and nursing knowledge.’ • ‘I feel that I have to be her role model, and become more mature myself.’

39. Discussion (1) • The study shows that student tutors can make cognitive gains in relation to the tutored subject, such as developing their understanding of and confidence in the subject by applying their knowledge in practical contexts. • To teach something- in a tutorial setting, as opposed to a didactic lecture setting, demands that one really come to grips with it- in order to render it meaningful to the learner.

40. Discussion (2) • Student tutoring also gives opportunity to develop many of the professional ‘transferable’ skills increasingly in demand by employers, such as communication, interpersonal and organizational and organizational skills.

41. Discussion (3) • Peer tutors developed their communication skills, problem solving technique, reflective thinking and simultaneously serve the needs of their peers and also gain in their confidence to solve their own problems and needs.

42. Discussion (4) • The findings of the study shows that peer tutoring provided a strong interactive communication and the developed a trusting and supportive relationship which is not only career enhancing but also an important source of student support.

43. Discussion (5) • As peer tutors have no official assessment function, they are in better position to solicit much higher disclosure of difficulties by tutees. • Peer tutors are more likely to give advice in a concrete form, contextualized in a recent example from their own experience, rather than in a more general or abstract form a university educator might use to address the whole class.

44. Conclusion (1) • From the interview data, it appears that the aim of improving students’ communication skills was achieved. However, it is difficult to determine whether the tutoring experience was the only or even the main cause of this improvement.

45. Conclusion (2) • The potential for peer tutoring raising aspiration is perhaps ‘ best seen as an element of a more comprehensive program’. • It can be argued that peer tutoring merely serves to bring to the surface needs that traditional teaching tends to overlook. • This is only one among many experiences aimed at helping students think positively about their future.

46. Conclusion (3) • The quality of tutoring from a peer tutor may not be as good as that from a professional teacher (although this should not be assumed), the need for monitoring and quality control cannot be overstated.

47. Conclusion (4) • The value of student tutoring has to be seen in the wider context of the work of the teachers and the strategic approach that encourages an appetite for continuing learning. • Tutoring schemes that are simply bolted on to existing practice rarely prove an effective tool for promoting learning and personal development.

48. Conclusion (5) Positive aspect of peer tutoring system: • In the increasingly competitive world environment it is imperative that higher education institution prepare well-equipped graduates. Problem solving and an ability to work effectively in a collaborative context are skills which are expected of graduates.

49. Conclusion (6) • Peer tutoring is usually a relatively small component of a wide range of teaching and learning strategies deployed in higher education, so the extent to which it is realistic to expect associated gains to be measurable, widespread, maintained and generalized is debatable.

50. Conclusion (7) • The activity of tutoring provides students with opportunity for case analysis and deepens their knowledge, and reflect about matters of wider concern. • The tutoring relationship between students is reciprocal in that students in both ends could gain from the tutoring and learning experience.