Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………………………………………………………..……..…… 2
ABOUT PEER-LED TEAM LEARNING……..……..……..…..…….……..……..…..……..…….……..……..…..…….……3
PEER-LED TEAM LEARNING AT NURSING SCHOOL……………………………………………………..…..4
PLTL LEADERS…………………………………………………………………………………………………….……..……..….5
OUTCOMES IN DIFFERENT SCHOOLS…………………………………………………………………………………6
IN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY IN ST.LOUIS.…….……..……..……..…..……..……..……..…..……..…….……..……7
IN SAN JOSE CITY COLLEGE……….……..…….……..…..…….……..…….…..……..…….……..…….…..……..…….…8
CONCLUSION…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…..……...11
BIBLIOGRAPHY…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 12
Introduction
Some colleges and universities have useful methods to help students succeed in their
undergraduate science courses. Peer Led Team Learning is a workshop where a group of
undergraduate students who have excel in a particular science course are trained to become
leaders to help peers who struggle with that subject. The PLTL workshop helps students build
their self- confidence, passion, and learning of science. Students engage by working in pairs or in
groups to improve their learning skills. PLTL workshops showed improvements for students not
only in their critical thinking but also in their grades. The workshop benefits both students and
peer leaders. The goals of students and peer leaders are being met when participating in the Peer–
Led Team Learning workshop. The workshop is where students of different race, goals and
learning skills are interacting with one another.
The goal for PLTL workshops in these various colleges is to prepare students for what is
head of them. For example, a peer leader may want to become a teacher and being part of the
workshop gives them a glance on what it is like being in that field. It also makes it easier for
students to answer questions outside of the workshop and studying for a chemistry or biology
class is less complicated to do at home or in the classroom. Not only does the workshop help
students with their education but they can help students on a more personal level. The outcome
of participating in the workshop is important for professors and students. Professors want to
know if the workshop makes an small or big impact on student’s grades. On the other hand,
students want to know better ways to succeed in their science course. It is important for student
to succeed in their science courses in order to follow their career goals. The workshop has a
positive effect on students and peer leaders. The PLTL workshop has decreased the number of
failures to increasing the number of students passing their science course.
The Peer Led Team Learning workshop helps students to have a better understanding of
the material they learned in any of their science courses. Students have the chance to introduce
what they already know and put it together with the new information they received in the
workshop. The peer leaders guide students to find varies solutions when it comes to problem
solving. The workshop helps students by giving challenging questions and lectures that are
related to their exams (Parente 2012). The workshop gives students the opportunity to share and
learn from each other’s ideas. At first, students may feel frighten or shy to participate but the
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workshop also helps them to interact with others without the need for them to feel frighten
(Parente 2012). The course professor teaches students new material while peer leaders help them
understand it and at the same time peer leaders are being observed (Parente 2012). Anyone in a
science course are welcome to join the PLTL workshop. The PLTL workshop is different from
tutoring because tutoring consists of giving the person that needs help the answer. On the other
hand, the PLTL workshop peer leaders help students find the answer by using different strategies
to solve problems. The goal of the peer leaders is to keep groups focused and encourage students
to participate (Varma 2007).
About Peer-Led Team Learning
A group of six to eight students are assisted by a student who is known as the leader and
has been trained. The peer leaders are examples of model students; they successfully completed a
course and they show good skills that can motivate other students to have (Gosser 2016). Instead
of attending an hour lecture, students would attend the workshop. The workshop consists of
meeting up weekly for two hours, communicating with one another and doing different activities
(Gosser 2016). The peer leaders also meet with the professors every week and discuss their plan
for the next workshop session. The students who are trained to become peer leaders work as
mentors for the students who attend the workshops. The reason for this workshop is to challenge
students thinking skills and develop new strategies that would help them in their science course.
Being part of the workshop is a life changing experience for both students and leaders who want
to expand their science career. Biology, general chemistry and other science courses can keep
students from reaching their career goals and PLTL workshop prevents that from happening by
helping students.
Peer Led Team Learning workshop started in the 1990s and was only for undergraduate
chemistry courses since most students that attended the City College of New York were failing
(Tenney 2003). It later it became accessible for other science courses. Students who struggle with
chemistry, biology, and anatomy and physiology would go to PLTL workshops to get a better
understanding and develop strategies that would help them succeed in the science course (Wiles
2016). This helped the students interact with one another, feel comfortable and engage with each
other more. Students understand and learn the material better when they are working with one
another than working by themselves (Frey 2008). It has shown that less students withdrew or
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failed a science course after participating in the PLTL workshop (Tenney). This pedagogical
approach helped many students from various universities and colleges. The peer-leaders help
students discuss and share answers with other students. The peer-leaders also guide students
towards their answers instead of just giving it to them. This is a way students build up their
critical thinking skills, which would later help them in the future.
Once those students who had done well in their science courses in high school entered
college, ended up not doing so well in their biology and chemistry courses. College is different
from middle school and high school. As freshmen, their study skills were not as developed as
those students who had already attended college. Since their study skills were poor, it led them
from having a high GPA in high school to having a poor grade in their science course in college.
For example, educators in biology and chemistry at the University of Portland found a way to
improve freshmen study skills by using and adjusting to Peer-Led Team learning method
(Tenney). Not only does this method benefit undergraduate students but gives instructors an
opportunity to better and expand their way of teaching.
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