Abstract
The Student Learning Assistant (SLA) scheme was introduced in 2010 at Middlesex University Mauritius Branch Campus (MUMBC). The scheme is similar to traditional peer learning strategies, such as Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) and Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS), which are widely operated in higher education environments to motivate student engagement with their learning. Different departments at MUMBC employ the SLA scheme as a student-to-student support mechanism. General feedback from students receiving SLA support reveals benefits of the scheme in terms of students’ active engagement with course materials and deeper understanding of their subject area. However, within these departments, lecturers’ perceptions of the scheme are surprisingly varied. Since the 1970s, a comprehensive range of research has been undertaken on the expansion of peer learning and the welcome benefits it affords to students. Yet, the focus on student experience has been at the expense of overlooking lecturers’ views of the scheme. This paper seeks to bridge this gap. It aims to examine lecturers’ experience of the scheme and to recommend actions to overcome some of their apprehension with the project.
Recommended Citation
Kodabux, Adeelah and Hoolash, Bheshaj Kumar Ashley, Peer learning strategies: Acknowledging lecturers’ concerns of the Student Learning Assistant scheme on a new higher education campus, Journal of Peer Learning, 8, 2015, 59-84.Available at:https://ro.uow.edu.au/ajpl/vol8/iss1/7
