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WIP: Impact of Peer Tutoring on Student Success

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Conference

2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Location

Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Publication Date

June 22, 2025

Start Date

June 22, 2025

End Date

August 15, 2025

Conference Session

First-Year Programs Division (FPD) Work-in-Progress 5: Academic Support, Retention, and Success Strategies

Tagged Division

First-Year Programs Division (FPD)

Page Count

8

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/57420

Paper Authors

biography

Sarath Chandra Kumar Jagupilla P.E. Stevens Institute of Technology (School of Engineering and Science)

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Prof. Jagupilla is a Teaching Associate Professor and Associate Chair for UG Studies in the CEOE department at Stevens Institute of Technology. He is also a licensed professional engineer, and a board certified environmental engineer. Dr. Jagupilla has over 19 years of teaching and research experience.

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Elizabeth O'Connell Stevens Institute of Technology (School of Engineering and Science)

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Muhammad R Hajj Stevens Institute of Technology (School of Engineering and Science)

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Abstract

A peer tutoring program executed at the department level to benefit first and second year students, is described. After identifying seven classes with relatively high failure percentages, the department established a peer tutoring program whereby junior and senior level students tutored first year and sophomore students. Tutoring was offered for differential calculus, integral calculus, calculus of two variables, multivariable calculus, mechanics, differential equations, and mechanics of solids courses. The tutoring program involved holding weekly office hours and review sessions before major exams. The average failure percentage of department students in the differential calculus course in the seven years prior to implementing this initiative was 8.7%. There were no failures in the two semesters when tutoring was offered. For integral calculus, the corresponding numbers were 3.6% and 0%. Similarly, department failure percentages in mechanics of solids dropped from 3.8% to 2.4%, differential equations from 10.3% to 3.1%, calculus of two variables from 7.8% to 2.5%, multivariable calculus from 7.8% to 3.5% and mechanics from 6.2% to 1.4%. When tutoring was not conducted in Spring 2024, the failure percentage for the mechanics course increased to 3.5%. The results indicate beneficial effects of peer tutoring programs held at the department level on student success. Several results were statistically significant with low p-values supporting the hypothesis that tutoring is beneficial. The tutoring initiative also provided part-time employment opportunities to students and hopefully instilled in them a sense of ownership and belonging.

Jagupilla, S. C. K., & O'Connell, E., & Hajj, M. R. (2025, June), WIP: Impact of Peer Tutoring on Student Success Paper presented at 2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Montreal, Quebec, Canada . https://peer.asee.org/57420

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