Peer Support: Relations between the context, process and outcomes for the students who are supported

In this paper an investigation of the outcomes of a Peer Support scheme for the students who are supported is reported. It was found that attendance at Peer Support sessions was positively and significantly correlated to academic performance. This relationship was found even when prior levels of academic performance were controlled for. However, it was also found that students who attended Peer Support sessions adopted less meaning orientated approaches to studying over the course of the academic year. It is argued that this is an indication that the quality of the learning of these students fell. Qualitative evidence suggests that this change in approach was in response to an increased awareness of the assessment demands of the course and that these students had become more strategically orientated in their approach to studying as a result of their attendance at Peer Support sessions. It is argued that these results suggest that the outcomes and operation of this Peer Support scheme were influenced by the context in which it operated. Two implications of these findings are discussed.