By Alison Sandstrom, TLS staff writer
Students struggle more with some courses than others. First year classes in particular can be difficult as students adjust to the academic expectations of university.
Professor Bob Burke teaches General Chemistry, a challenging course for many first-year students.
“Some high school chemistry is roughly equivalent to this course, so students who have taken that have no problems. Others’ backgrounds are weak, so they struggle. Lack of math skills is a big problem,” he says.
Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS) is a program from the Centre for Student Academic Support designed for courses like General Chemistry that have traditionally had high DFW rates. Over 90 courses were supported by PASS during the 2015-16 academic year.
PASS workshops are led by facilitators – senior students who have taken the class before and received a grade of A- or better. During the session, the facilitator guides students through activities designed to build an understanding of course concepts. The sessions also help students develop study and group-work skills.
Lena Petersen has been a PASS facilitator for two years. She says what sets PASS apart is its focus on active learning.
“Often in university we’re subject to a lot of passive learning, like in lectures, but PASS encourages different kinds of learning techniques,” she says.
Professor Chris Motz teaches Introduction to Psychology, a course that has been supported by PASS since 2007. He recommends all his students make use of the free program.
“The work that my PASS facilitators are doing is excellent. They create meaningful and useful studying resources for the students,” he says.
Both Burke and Motz are baffled that most students don’t attend PASS regularly.
“Despite the PASS program’s proven record, we still struggle to get students to show up,” says Motz.
For students who do use the program, the results are encouraging. Data collected by SASC shows students across the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences who attended PASS regularly (10 or more hours a week) had a B+ average. That’s a full letter grade higher than students in the same faculty who did not attend PASS sessions.
Petersen says seeing how PASS helps students succeed is the most rewarding part of her job.
“Students are not required to attend, but they attend by choice,” she says. “What’s really great is that we often get students who come back weekly and we can see the results. We don’t see their grades but I can see how they are understanding the material more.”
To find out more about PASS sessions and other programs and services that your students can benefit from, visit the CSAS website.