Effectiveness of PSL

PSL Comprehensive Benefits

By Daniel Dimitrijevik
(Facilitator for MARK 1115 & FMGT 1116)

Supplemental Instruction (SI), or as it is known to us here at Langara, Peer Supported Learning (PSL), originated in 1973 as a program developed by Dr. Deanna Martin at the University of Kansas City in Missouri.¹

PSL is a program that benefits students at every level but aims at targeting difficult courses, particularly those with a 30% or above D, fail, or withdrawal rate. This rate is commonly referred to by its acronym, the DFW rate. The goal of PSL is to decrease the DFW rate as much as possible through hosting student-led, regular, voluntary, and anonymous group study sessions.

PSL has received steady praise by institutions and scholars as far away as Sweden, Australia, and South Africa, or as close to home as Toronto and Seattle.² PSL has been shown to consistently improve the academic wellbeing of the students who utilize it. Studies have found the following:

1. Better Grades

Students who regularly attend PSL sessions do significantly better academically versus students who either attend PSL sessions infrequently or not at all. A study from Columbus State University found that PSL attendees who participated in five or more sessions during the semester received 22% higher final course marks than the PSL group that attended fewer than five sessions (Hughes, 2011). This shows us that a key to improving student academic results relies on the frequency in which students attend PSL sessions, where higher attendance equates to improved results. Another study on the matter from Lund University in Sweden had similar findings, where student academic performance improved as a result of their PSL attendance rate (Malm & Bryngfors, 2011).

2. Improvement With One Try

Students who do not regularly attend PSL sessions have been shown to still do better academically if they give the program a try at least once, versus those who never attend.

  • Researchers from the University of Toronto confirmed that students have had increased academic success as a result of attending at least one PSL session, or as it is known in the study, a facilitated study group (FSG). The study found that students in their PSY 100 first-year psychology course obtained a 4.92% higher final course mark just by attending a single FSG session (Paabo et al., 2019).
  • Figure 1 below is a graphic from a PSL program in Sydney, Australia, showing the grade distribution of final course marks in a business statistics class (Dancer et al., 2014). It shows us that the 2006 group of PSL attendees, or PASS, as the program is known in Sydney, has a significantly higher chance of scoring above 65%. The number rises to 75% for the 2010 group, most likely as a result of the growth of the institution’s PASS program.

Figure 1
Grade Distribution of Final Course Marks by PSL Participation, Sydney, Australia 

Source: Dancer et al., 2014, p. 1820.

Stepping away from improved academic performance as a result of attending PSL sessions, we can also see that PSL improves more than just course marks. Studies have confirmed that it boosts timely graduation, increases student retention at the institution, and facilitates a stronger bond between students on campus. It also allows students to form meaningful relationships with other students attending PSL, faculty, and the peer leaders facilitating the sessions.

3. More Likely to Graduate

  • A Utah State University study found that students who attended the institution’s Supplemental Instruction program are more likely to graduate from their program by 10.75%. This means that a PSL-like program not only benefits students, as they get to graduate sooner, but the host institution as well, as a higher graduation success rate allows for more open seats for other students (Bowles et al., 1970).
  • Lund University in Sweden also established that as students attend PSL more frequently, they are more likely to graduate from their program (Malm et al., 2018). As seen below in Figure 2, the study found that students who did not attend any PSL sessions had a 30% graduation rate after six years at the university, compared to an over 70% graduation rate for students who attended PSL sessions frequently. This stunning disparity in results showcases why PSL-like programs have been spreading all over the world and why they have received much praise.

Figure 2
Graduation Rates by Frequency of PSL Participation,  Lund University, Sweden

Source: Malm et al., 2018, p. 82.

4. Higher Learning Satisfaction

An online variant of a PSL-like program found that students who participated in small group PSL sessions not only felt more engaged with the course, but with university life in general (Lim et al., 2016). The group also felt that they could ask questions in a non-judgemental manner and that they enjoyed studying in this format.

To conclude, PSL programs are growing by the number each year all around the world. With proven academic and non-academic benefits ranging from higher final course marks to greater engagement with the course content, it is no surprise that many institutions are choosing to implement PSL-like programs.


¹ UMKC General SI Questions. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://info.umkc.edu/si/faq/
² UMKC SI Around the World. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://info.umkc.edu/si/si-around-the-world/; UMKC SI Around the US (n.d.). Retrieved from https://info.umkc.edu/si/si-around-the-us/

References

Bowles, T. J., McCoy A. C., & Bates, S. C. (2008). The effect of Supplemental Instruction on timely graduation. College Student Journal, 42(30), 853-859. Retrieved from https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/The-Effect-of-Supplemental-Instruction-on-Timely-Bowles-McCoy/dfd53e96d04045b6ddb080dd3091dab4cbaf715f

Dancer, D., Morrison, K., & Tarr, G. (2014). Measuring the effects of peer learning on students academic achievement in first-year business statistics. Studies in Higher Education, 40(10), 1808–1828. doi: 10.1080/03075079.2014.916671.

Hughes, K. S. (2011). Peer-assisted learning strategies in human anatomy & physiology. The American Biology Teacher, 73(3), 144–147. doi: 10.1525/abt.2011.73.3.5.

Lim, C., Anderson, F., & Mortimer, R. (2016). PASSport to the cloud – results of a peer-assisted study sessions (PASS) online pilot program. Student Success, 7(2), 59. doi: 10.5204/ssj.v7i2.342.

Malm, J., & Bryngfors, L. (2011). Improving student success in difficult engineering education courses through Supplemental Instruction (SI) – what is the impact of the degree of SI attendance?. Retrieved from https://ro.uow.edu.au/ajpl/vol4/iss1/4/

Malm, J., Bryngfors, L., & Fredriksson, J., Impact of Supplemental Instruction on dropout and graduation rates: an example from 5-year engineering programs, Journal of Peer Learning, 11, 2018, 76-88.

Paabo, M. V., Brijmohan, A., Klubi, T., Evans-Tokaryk, T., & Childs, R. A. (2019). Participation in peer-led Supplemental Instruction groups, academic performance, and time to graduation. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, 152102511982628. doi: 10.1177/1521025119826287.

 


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