Towards Inclusive, Participatory Peer Tutor Development in Higher Education

Abstract

Peer tutoring has a long history in academic support spaces in universities, such as writing centres and supplemental instruction programmes. Small group peer tutoring has moved increasingly into 'mainstream' teaching and learning, and has become an academic necessity in these spaces. The nature of student-tutor engagements in these spaces is about sharing and co-constructing knowledge, and developing more independent student learners. Yet, tutor development and training tends to under-prepare peer tutors to create participatory, inclusive tutorial environments. This paper argues for tutor development itself to model participatory, inclusive, and development practices, such that tutors learn from being part of the training process how to improve their practice. Drawing on qualitative data from a three-year project at a traditional, historically black South African university, this paper shows how such an approach yields benefits for tutors that include building knowledge about tutoring that overtly includes tutors' existing knowledge and experiences. Ultimately, a more inclusive approach to tutor development has a strong likelihood of changing tutoring praxis, making tutorials more participatory, inclusive, and shared spaces for learning.

Transforming the tutorial space to enhance knowledge sharing in higher education

“…The research on tutorials also focuses on the planning, policy and implementation of tutorials systems. In South Africa and across the globe, the research shows that effective tutorial planning and implementation at higher education institutions positively influence student success, engagement and throughput rates (Clarence, 2018;Layton, 2013). Studies on tutors and tutoring also acknowledge that a clearly defined institutional policy relating to tutorial management, resources, recruitment, training and support of tutors and academic staff can help deal with the many complexities involved in effective tutoring (Pather, 2018).…”

“…However, Layton (2013) warns that the partnership should not be about the lecturer telling the tutor what to do and what not to do, but rather, it should be a partnership where both parties co-learn and cocreate knowledge. Clarence (2018) suggests that the main rationale behind tutorials is more than just tutoring students for academic success but extends further to include sharing ideas, co-constructing knowledge and developing more independent tutors. However, from the literature review, we noted a limited number of studies that focus on the lecturers' role in knowledge sharing to transform the tutorial space.…”

Peer tutors’ views on their role in motivating learners to learn mathematics

“…With class sizes increasing at colleges and universities globally, tutoring and more specifically peer tutoring has grown in popularity (Alegre, Moliner, Maroto, & Lorenzo-Valentin, 2020;Nawaz & Rehman, 2017). In South Africa, tutoring has increased significantly since the 1990s (Clarence, 2018). Tutoring in South Africa is an important intervention strategy that is utilised mainly at university level as an essential mediation that affects learners' ability to retain the knowledge that they have acquired (Layton & McKenna, 2016).…”

“…Tutoring in South Africa is an important intervention strategy that is utilised mainly at university level as an essential mediation that affects learners' ability to retain the knowledge that they have acquired (Layton & McKenna, 2016). The tutorial system enables students an opportunity to gain the necessary knowledge to pass (Clarence, 2018;Layton & McKenna, 2016). However, peer tutoring is not a common formalised intervention strategy used at the school level.…”

Análisis del impacto de las acciones tutoriales en el desempeño académico de estudiantes de universidades públicas chilenas

“…Siendo de especial relevancia considerar la diversidad del alumnado en cuanto a características personales, metodologías de aprendizaje y competencias profesionales, debido a su asociación directa en su desempeño académico, que al ser deficiente puede ocasionar fenómenos de abandono y deserción académica (Guerrero y Faro, 2012;Li y Carroll, 2019). En la actualidad el tema de la diversidad en las instituciones de educación superior ha sido ampliamente debatido y estudiado desde distintas miradas como el institucionalismo, la teoría de las identidades, la ecología de poblaciones y la elección estratégica o racional, cuyo estudio contempla enfoques como la diversidad organizacional y los programas que representan finalmente (Clarence, 2018;Fernández y Bajac, 2018). Observando que el ingreso, retención y egreso universitario forman parte de un continuo con características propias y que impactan sobre el posible éxito o fracaso del alumno (Abbot, Graf y Chatfield, 2018;Acevedo, 2020;Rabossi, 2014).…”