Mentoring
Mentoring between students is a very good idea if the right mentor is chosen. This process could effect the student's decision to continue or drop out.
Mentoring is an intresting subject and takes on many different forms. You can be a lifetime mentor or just one occasion can be a mentoring experience.
I do agree with Jerome when he says the students enroled to learn from an experenced instructor, but i have also found that they can learn from a fellow student. We have rolling enrollment so we have new students in class with students that have been in class for 12-18 weeks. New students learn how to study and to get a life plan from the students who have been doing it for awhile.
Students feel more comfortable with and are more likely to listen to their peers.
Students don't enrole in school to learn from each other. They are here to learn from experienced instructors skilled in their field.Instructors should not present themselves in such a manner that students place more trust and credibility in a fellow student than they do in the instructor. Granted some students have field experience and are able and willing to assist the instructor in the lab, which we should incourage as long as the studen mentor supports the instructor and corriculum in a positive manner.
Interesting concept, Michael. Do you have a sense of their decision making criteria? Area of interest? Personality type? Accessibility?
I have frequently found that students will choose their mentors. They try to model and interract with the instructors whome they respect most.
Students most of the time will relate better to each other than to their instructor. They are more liklely see each other as someone on the same level, not as someone who is their superior.
