Post on 03-Apr-2018
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What it Means to be a Peer orThe Center as Mentor
Jennifer Finstrom
Lisa Lenoir
DePaul University
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As adultsnontraditional students
As students in a university setting: both
undergraduate and graduate
As peer tutors in a writing center setting
As mentors and mentees
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In 2006, the number of nontraditional students wasincreasing more quickly than any other groupattending college.
Many of these students are distance learners, andtotal enrollment in all distance learning coursesacross the United States has more than doubledsince 1995 (754,000 to 1.9 million).
From the US University Review
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In Fall 2011, 53.8% were under 24 years
old; about 46% were 24 and older across
the universitys colleges.
In the School for New Learning, 99.4% and
100 % of the undergraduate and graduate
students, respectively were 24 and older.
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The School for New Learning (SNL) providesa unique approach to learning for adults, withcustomized programs that build upon abilitiesand experiences, add knowledge, anddevelop skills to help achieve personal andprofessional goals.
A fundamental idea behind SNL is learning
from experience. We believe mixingexperiences and interpretations results inlasting knowledge.
www.snl.depaul.edu
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What exactly is meant by a nontraditionalstudent?
Can nontraditional students be bothgraduate students and undergraduatestudents?
The commonly accepted definition is sobroad that the very fact of a definition canbe questioned.
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The National Center for Education Statistics
defines nontraditional undergraduate students
by the following criteria:
Delays enrollment
Attends part time
Is financially independent (for purpose of
financial aid) continued
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Has dependents other than a spouse
Is a single parent (either not married or
married but separated)
Does not have a high school diploma (
has a GED or did not graduate)
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According to Horn (1996), on a continuum based on
these characteristics, students fall into three
categories of nontraditional.
"minimally nontraditional" if they have only one
nontraditional characteristic
"moderately nontraditional" if they have two or three
"highly nontraditional" if they have four or more
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The nontraditional student, however, resistsdefinition. Nontraditional students are full-timeemployees and full-time parents; military personneland veterans; stay-at-home moms and home-schooledstudents. They go to school part-time and full-time,online and in the classroom. The only quality theyshare is that theyre typically older than the traditionalstudentmost U.S. census data surveys classify themas 25 and olderbut traditional-aged students who arealso parents or full-time workers, as well as home-
schoolers going to college online, may question thisdefinition.
-from distance-education.org
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A student can become more or less
nontraditional and that identity can
change and be renegotiated.
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A change in these outward factors isnt the
only way that a change in self-perception
can come about.
A change in where a nontraditional student
locates him or herself in an academic
setting can also bring about this change.
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Mauk writes of the placelessness of
many college students, mentioning
nontraditional students in particular, and
proposes that what is needed is a new
pedagogy that will connect the academic
with the students everyday life.
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peer1noun 1
3. a someone who is one's equal in age,
rank, etc; a contemporary, companion or
fellow; bas adjpeer group.
ETYMOLOGY: 14c: from Frenchper, from
Latinparequal.
(From Chambers
Dictionary)
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Students work tended to improve when theygot help from peers; peers offering help,furthermore, learned from the students they
helped and from the activity of helping itself.Collaborative learning, it seemed, harnessedthe powerful educative force of peer influencethat had been-and largely still is-ignored and
hence wasted by traditional forms ofeducation. (Bruffee, Collaborative Learning and theConversation of Mankind)
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Words origin comes
from Greek
mythology.
A mentor is looked to
for wise advice and
guidance.
Telemachus and Mentor
mlahanas.de
Source:
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=mentor
&
www.umbc.edu/cwit/pdf/CWIT_Mentoring_Tool_KitCWIT Mentoring Tool
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Mentee or protg: A person guided and
helped especially in the furtherance of his
or her career, by another, more influential
person. -www.umbc.edu/cwit/pdf/CWIT_Mentoring_Tool
_Kit CWIT Mentoring Tool
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Writing centers can:
Increase peer tutor confidence
Instill a sense of responsibility
Raise awareness about the importance of
writing as part of the democratic process
Generate a desire and ability to succeed
professionally and personally. -adapted fromwww.umbc.edu/cwit/pdf/CWIT_Mentoring_Tool_KitCWIT Mentoring Tool
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By viewing the self through the lens of
writing center workadding the identity of
peer to that of nontraditional
perceptions changed and new self-
definitions became possible.
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The identity of nontraditional studentcannot be easily negotiated or defined.
Nontraditional students can benefit frombeing mentored just as much as traditionalstudents.
Writing centers can fill a mentorship roleand foster productivity and futureachievement.