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Peer education is advising, mentoring, tutoring or teaching activities provided by undergraduates to undergraduates. Peer education takes many forms at the University of Iowa. We've confined our attention to those activities, both curricular and co-curricular, that have an explicit educational focus.

Benefits of Peer Education

Peer education activities benefit both students who receive and students who provide peer education. Peer education provides the sort of engagement that can lead to success at the University. Teaching a topic can often lead to a deeper understanding of that topic. In the best situations, student educators develop professional skills, form mentoring relationships with staff and faculty supervisors, and identify the "knowing, being, doing" principles of teaching and leadership.

Students using the services of the peer education program, of course, benefit from the educational opportunities provided by the program. Peer education provides a different way of learning, and more teaching contact for students. In the best circumstances, peer education leads to increased academic success rates for its beneficiaries. In addition, students served by peer educators can form a closer connection to The University of Iowa, other students, faculty and staff.

For program supervisors, the involvement of peer educators can provide more immediate feedback on course and program material, and the opportunity to develop mentoring relationships with students.

Challenges

Because peer education involves students educating students, it becomes especially important to adhere to particular program standards. At a minimum, a peer education program requires:

A training program
A good pool of qualified peer educators
On-going supervision and assessment
Compliance with appropriate University policies

Certain activities do not lend themselves to peer education. Specifically, activities that faculty find challenging are not appropriate for peer educators. For example, asking undergraduate to be primary providers of classroom material, especially if the material involves integration of complex ideas across disciplines, does not seem appropriate. Some activities are governed by state or federal regulations that might prevent teaching by undergraduates. The COGS contract, for example, provides limits on the role that undergraduates can play as teaching assistants. Overall, peer education should not be seen as a substitute for other types of education by faculty and staff.

Programs also need to consider the ethical issues involved in undergraduates teaching other undergraduates, including policies on confidentiality, grading and evaluation, and consensual relationships.

Standards for Peer Education

In the context of health care, a set of sstpe:students reviewed the literature on peer education and found that, although peer education is widely used, the theoretical and empirical support for its efficacy is limited. They point out that "Most peer education research has focused on the short-term impact of programming and changes to peer educators, and not on the behavioral changes in the target population." With that in mind, we outline brief, broad standards for peer education.

Rationale
Because of the benefits to students, staff, and faculty, faculty and staff should seek opportunities to expand peer education through the recruitment of effective students and the creation of new opportunities for peer to peer education.

Student Development
Peer Education programs should strive to address the whole student. They will provide academic instruction, help acclimate students to the expectations of their instructors, and create opportunities for students to develop a stronger identity with their peers and The University of Iowa.

Implementation
Peer educators should complete a training process that includes proficiency in the relevant material, development of communication skills, knowledge of differing learning styles, information on group and one-on-one interactions, and an understanding of ethical issues and University policies. Students should also develop time management, diversity awareness, and problem-solving skills. At least one faculty or staff member should serve as a mentor throughout a student's tenure in the peer educator role.

The National Association of Peer Programs has outlined standards for peer education programs. We summarize those standards in a form more useful for the collegiate setting.

Opportunities for peer education at The University of Iowa

Health advocacy

Advising

Supplemental Instruction

[sstpe:Math Department]
Honors Center
[sstpe:Academic Advising Center]

Tutors

Teaching Aides

Employment-related programs

Orientation

Effectiveness of peer education

Recommendations

The intent, form, and extent of a peer education program is often particular to the needs of the office or unit supervising that program. To increase the visibility and extent of peer education on campus, we recommend the following action items:

A forum for discussion of peer education on campus
Peer education takes different forms and occurs in different contexts on campus. To promote best practices, we recommend the pursuit of activities that would encourage those units that provide peer education to share information through a list serve, web site, or this wiki. Alternatively, a one-time roundtable discussion of peer education could be organized for Fall 2008. We do not envision a committee or task force that would meet on a regular basis.
A workshop on best practices
Given the extent of peer education, the University might consider a one-day workshop on best practices in peer education.
A detailed list of peer education programs
A consideration of funding support
Most programs do not pay their peer educators, and rely on academic credit and awards as forms of recognition and remuneration.

Authors of peer education literature review: Tina Arthur, Angela Bong, Lucas Christain, Karen Eilers, Brooke Hansen, Brandy Killian, Nisha Kumar, David Merry, Patrick Rossmann, Constance Scarbrough, Sara Stahlman, and Melissa Stauffer.