Tested Studies for Laboratory Teaching (ABLE Proceedings)

Title:

The Peer Learning Association and the Learning by Teaching Model

Url:

http://www.ableweb.org/volumes/vol-37/v37reprint.php?ch=36

Author:

Jean Heitz

Author's Address:

University of Wisconsin-Madison, Department of Zoology, WI

Email Address:

jgheitz@wisc.edu

Description: Beginning in 2009, a dedicated group of undergraduates took the initiative on the UW-Madison campus to develop a Peer Learning Association. The Peer Learning Association (PLA) operates by working with interested faculty/staff in development of peer learning programs tailored to their students’ needs. The core concept behind the program is “learning by teaching” (Ploetzner et al. 1999). The specific topics/concepts to be addressed are determined by the course’s faculty/staff and are communicated to peer members in
advance of the weekly meetings. Peer members are responsible for learning the material well enough to teach it to others. The Peer Facilitator randomly assigns topics/concepts to peer members. During sessions,
our Peer Facilitators "lead from the sidelines"; they do not lecture. Their primary role during their weekly
sessions is to keep the peer group on track or to steer peer group members in the right direction via Socratic
questioning. It is the peer group members who teach each other. This session described the basic
organization of the PLA, the weekly training we provide our Peer Facilitators and the organization of a
typical weekly peer group session. Access to the PLA handbook and time for questions about the organization can be found at: https://uwmadison.box.com/v/PeerLearning.

Keywords:

peer instruction

Topic:

Teaching Tools and Techniques

BEN Subject/Discipline Taxonomy:

Teaching Tools and Techniques

Learning Resource Type:

Teaching strategies & guidelines (DCMI Type Vocabulary)

Context:

Undergraduate lower division 13-14
Undergraduate upper division 15-16

Format:

pdf