Peer-led workshops spread across campus

The workshops are a team effort, with faculty members, learning specialists, and students working together to develop a new way to encourage students to become active partners in their education.

"Most traditional teaching structures put the faculty in the activist role and students in a passive role," said chemistry Professor Jack Kampmeier, who along with Assistant Dean Vicki Roth has led implementation of the workshops. "This project reverses the situation; students become the activists.

"The evidence is overwhelming that students learn by doing," he adds. "We're social animals and the whole process of learning is socially mediated. We've found a structure that brings these principles to life."

The NSF funds will be used to help make educators at other institutions aware of the program and to prepare materials for classroom use. The money also will support regional meetings where participants can exchange information and experiences, as well as publications, newsletters, and guides to help train faculty members and students in the workshop model.

A portion of the funds slated for Rochester will go toward expanding a leader training program developed by Roth, who heads the Learning Assistance Services office. She has created a two-credit class where workshop leaders learn about group dynamics and how to guide the workshops. The class is a model for the training of peer leaders at institutions around the country. In the summer Roth will direct a meeting at the University for faculty, students, and staff from other institutions to discuss the training of leaders who come from the ranks of students who have previously taken a course and done well.

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