Students Teaching Students

Students who see the letters "SI" on the class registration schedule in the fall may be in for a whole new method of learning.

SI, which stands for supplemental instruction, is focused around the concept of having a student who has previously done well in a course facilitate a study session outside of class.

In contrast to the tutoring normally offered through the writing center, SI focuses more on having students work together and learn better study methods.

The student facilitators, known as supplemental instruction leaders, provide an example to students by sitting in on classes and displaying good note-taking and questioning habits. By holding study sessions outside of class where students can work together, the focus is more on student learning.

The SI leader has the difficult job of facilitating the group in such a way that the students work together with some guidance, without the session turning toward more typical tutorial learning.

"In the study group, the students are learning to work with the information they get from the faculty," said director of student academic development Debra Bailin. "What worked in high school doesn't always work in college."

The program, which was developed almost 40 years ago at the University of Missouri in Kansas City, is still in its pilot stage at LSC. It began in fall 2010 with one course and has since expanded slowly.

Offers and information will soon be going out to faculty in regards to next year's courses. Bruce Berryman, Kevin Farrell, and Dan Williams are only a few of the professors that have shown interest in supporting some classes in their respective disciplines with SI. It's typically offered for more challenging classes.           

"Confident students benefit as much from participation in the study groups as struggling students," said Bailin, "I'd like to see SI become a permanent offering at LSC."

Others involved also have high hopes. Andrew Cochran, who facilitated two sections of Critical Thinking last semester, found the experience to be unique. "I would say it's harder than tutoring," he said, describing it as "high-paying and satisfying, but draining."

Even with a good SI leader and full cooperation from the faculty, the program doesn't always result in higher grades or pass rates. Skill-based classes don't always lend themselves to the collaborative model. Since the factors are slightly different with each SI-supported class, such as whether or not the meetings are mandatory, there are a lot of variables to be worked out.

"There are definitely some hitches in the system, but plenty of other universities have made it work with their classes," said Cochran. "I'd like to see it in more majors, like psychology."

Since much of the human services classes involve teamwork and group projects, Cochran and Bailin agreed that SI may work well. The same holds true for many other courses in different majors, and there is plenty of time to find out.