I am interested in establishing a student-led mentoring programme within the course I work on- Fine Art Photography at Camberwell. I work extensively with the first year, especially within their initial weeks at university, when I think peer-support would be beneficial to mitigate experiences of isolation amongst new arrivals, especially international students.
Gibbs (2015) writes about the importance of social integration to wellbeing, retention and consequently attainment, saying ‘one of the most effective ways to improve retention is to get students to form study groups’.
My initial idea is based on models I’ve heard about anecdotally, where students are grouped into ‘family’ units, with two or three first-year students are paired with a similar number of third-years. I would give them a series of tasks over several meetings during the first term – initially orientation-style activities, where the first-years would rely upon the third-years’ experience to help them find things on campus or complete challenges. The intention would be that they build an informal and sociable support network, so that the later meetings could involve going off-site to an exhibition and sharing knowledge of the local area in a way that builds confidence and friendships.
As an incentive for the third-year students to take part, the first-years that they are grouped with would be asked to support with the construction and installation of their degree shows the following summer. This was something I did as a student and remember gaining invaluable professional skills and an insight into where my own studies were heading.
I am unsure whether the project would work best by grouping international students from similar backgrounds together as this might allow them to converse in a familiar language and feel more comfortable, or whether this could potentially enhance feelings of segregation. I would be interested in feedback from colleagues about this, or any learnings they’ve had from similar schemes in the past.
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Gibbs, G. (2015). Maximising Student Learning Gain. In H. Fry, S. Ketteridge, & S. Mar-shall (Eds.), A Handbook forTeaching and Learning in Higher Education (4th ed., pp.193-208). Routledge.
Thank you for sharing your project proposal last Friday. I found your ideas for various interventions to create a mentoring/socialising program very inspiring. Your ideas are far reaching, and I think they could be the beginning of a framework to create community and fight isolation.
You mentioned that the real proof of success would be if the students maintain the relationships over time. I think that a smaller impact is also an important impact. Having a couple of other students you recognise and can say hi to on campus also makes a difference for a first year student.
I think your idea of an orientation-style activity is very good. We discussed how you could create a treasure hunt or similar. Gamified learning has been repeatedly shown to increase the engagement and the motivation of students (Christopoulos, A. Mystakidis, S. Gamification in Education. Encyclopedia 2023, 3, 1223–1243.)
You talked about the the possibility of having a notice board where the students could share tips with each other. This is another great idea, and something I would like to implement myself. You could ask the students if they prefer it to be physical or digital. The benefit of a digital format is that it would be accessible off site.
In regards to grouping international students from similar backgrounds together – it is a tricky one. Every individual has different preferences. Personally, I would not have liked to be paired up with a Swedish student! However, I know that some of my students from further overseas feel homesick, and would love to connect with others from their country. Hopefully the notice board can be a place for this, if it does not happen in your socialising groups.
Thank you for your thoughts here and in the presentation last week Maria, you’ve given me some really helpful guidance! I think the noticeboard (whether physical or virtual) is a great suggestion and perhaps a low-effort way to keep the conversation running after the tutor-led input has ended. Engagement with this might also provide a way for me to monitor the success of the intervention.
I really like the idea of a treasure hunt as Jasper described, and will have a think about how this could be implemented. I’ve been making a list of places and facilities that students often find hard to find, or they are too shy to enter – hopefully with a couple of confident third years and a prize for the winning team then they may be incentivised to explore.
The peer-to-peer presentation session has given me lots of food for thought- thank you for your input.
This is a great idea. Starting university can be overwhelming, and peer support from more experienced students could really help first-years feel more connected and confident.
I remember at Chelsea, first-years used to help install final-year students’ degree shows. Reactions were mixed – some enjoyed it, others felt it was too much work. I like that your model frames this as a reciprocal exchange, which could make the experience rewarding for both groups.
The question of whether to group students by shared background or mix them is a good one. Shared language can offer comfort, but it might also unintentionally reinforce separation. For instance, the approach to ethnic categorisation I observed in America differs from our British context. In fact, any form of grouping is unlikely to align with how students perceive their own identities. Such approaches can inadvertently reinforce biases and stereotypes.
It is also worth considering that students who share a language or cultural background often connect organically, without the need for formal grouping.
A flexible approach based on student preferences could work best.
Thank you for this comment Ana, you’re right- grouping students by nationality might be problematic for many reasons. Some of the research I did for the Intervention Report suggested that many international students feel that being surrounded by other international students that speak the same language as them actually a hindrance for their integration and language development. Hopefully a conscious mix of home and international students in each group will help to alleviate this risk.