Peer assisted learning in pharmacy: The mentor and student perspective
Keywords:
Peer Learning, Mentoring, Education, Student, MentorAbstract
Introduction: Peer assisted learning (PAL) was introduced into a 2nd year pharmacy cohort (n=160) using older students as mentors. Participation in PAL was voluntary.
Aim: This study aims to evaluate the Pharmacy Law PAL sessions, from both the students’ and mentors’ perspective.
Methodology: Evaluation surveys were designed to understand participation and experiences for both students and mentors. Surveys were distributed and collected at the end of a lecture and analysed using Survey Monkey and word clouds.
Results: Encouragingly 91.1% (n=82/90) of the responders had attended a PAL session, with the average attendance being four sessions. Positives of being taught by peers include opportunities to learn from their experiences, and ask questions from peers who have already completed the module. Mentors also benefitted from participating in the scheme.
Conclusion: Results show that students appreciate these additional support mechanisms, and the majority of students have engaged with these.
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