Free Peer Learning is offered to all AAP students who want to strengthen their abilities to think critically and independently, read analytically, write well, reason quantitatively, and study effectively while mastering course materials. Every year, we train over 130+ Peer Learning Facilitators (mostly successful upper division AAP students) to work as Peer Learning Facilitators (PLFs) and to serve as academic role models. The Unit provides Peer Learning Sessions to almost 2,000 AAP students every week. AAP Peer Learning sessions offer students an opportunity to shape their own educational experiences – and to excel. The Peer Learning Unit builds on the premise that critical thinking and intellectual independence are developed through questioning and dialogue. Most of our Peer Learning sessions take place in small groups of three to twelve students. This setting fosters discussion and allows students to listen to, grapple with, and articulate new perspectives. It enables students to work collaboratively, helping them to see that they can rely on classmates as well as Peer Learning Facilitators; it helps students develop the tools necessary for scholarly inquiry. We treat writing as a process of ongoing revision, encouraging students to critically evaluate and edit their own writing.
Philosophy
AAP Peer Learning Makes a Difference!!!
AAP Peer Learning sessions are concerned with fostering excellence, not remediation. Every year, the AAP Peer Learning Unit provides free workshops to more than 5,400+ AAP students through its Math/ Sciences, and Humanities/Social Sciences Labs. AAP Peer Learning sessions offer you a unique opportunity to receive individual attention, to shape your own educational experience, and to push yourself to academic excellence.
The majority of our sessions are done in small groups of three to twelve students. Small group Peer Learning fosters discussion and allows for the articulation of different perspectives. It helps you develop the tools necessary for scholarly inquiry. It allows you to work collaboratively, to help one another, to see that you can rely on classmates as well as TA’s and PLFs, and to see that you are not alone in your personal or academic pursuits.
Composition courses are led almost exclusively one-on-one and focus on your own expression and understanding. Writing is treated as a process of ongoing revision, teaching you to critically evaluate and revise your own writing. Individual sessions allow the Peer Learning Facilitator to become more involved in your learning process, and to get a close-up look at what skills, experiences, and knowledge you bring to the course. Individual sessions give you and the PLF a better opportunity to get to know and trust one another.
AAP’s Peer Learning philosophy is grounded in the following beliefs:
To become active and critical thinkers, students must assume responsibility for the learning that occurs in Peer Learning sessions. The aim is to place students at the center of Peer Learning sessions, making students responsible for interpreting materials, questioning concepts, and testing the ideas encountered in classes.
AAP Peer Learning Facilitators do not reproduce the role of the instructor. In fact, they regularly encourage students to meet with their professors and TA’s. PLFs supplement instruction by getting you to engage course materials actively, critically, and independently through questioning, dialogue, and debate. The aim is to place you at the center of the Peer Learning session, making you responsible for interpreting materials, questioning concepts, and testing the ideas you encounter in your classes.
Students recognize their own intellectual authority best in an environment that combines rigorous academic expectations with encouragement, support, and respect.
AAP Peer Learning Facilitators encourage you to share your experiences and insights freely during sessions; they provide you with constructive feedback that acknowledges the value of your ideas and validates your potential as an aspiring scholar; they actively challenge your perceptions and help you appreciate the power and value of your ethnic and socio-economic background.
Effective Peer Learning Facilitators are intellectual mentors who offer their personal support and their knowledge of campus life.
Peer Learning Facilitators are sometimes asked to mediate in problems and situations that have roots in distinctly non- academic spheres: in feelings of alienation, anxiety about family expectations, financial pressures, and the like. Trained in crisis intervention, AAP PLFs provide students with information about campus resources and refer students to the appropriate campus offices.
Math and Sciences Lab
A&O SCI 1
ASTRO 3
ASTRO 5
CHEM 14A
CHEM 14B
CHEM 14BL
CHEM 14C
CHEM 14CL
CHEM 14D
CHEM 20A
CHEM 20B
CHEM 20BL
CHEM 30A
CHEM 30B
CHEM 30C
CHEM 153A
LIFESCI 7A
LIFESCI 7B
LIFESCI 7C
LIFESCI 30A
LIFESCI 30B
LIFESCI 30A
MATH 1
MATH 3A
MATH 3B
MATH 3C
MATH 31A
MATH 31B
MATH 32A
MATH 32B
MATH 33A
MATH 33B
MATH 115A
MATH 131A
PHYSCI 15
PHYSICS 1A
PHYSICS 1B
PHYSICS 1C
PHYSICS 5A
PHYSICS 5B
PHYSICS 5C
PHYSICS 10
PIC 10A
PIC 10B
STATS 10
STATS 13
STATS 100A
*The availability of PLF sessions for these courses vary each quarter.
Humanities and Social Sciences
AN N EA 10W
ANTHRO 1
ANTHRO 2
ANTHRO 3
ANTHRO 4
CHICANA/O/X 10A
CHICANA/O/X 10B
CHICANA/O/X M159A
CHICANA/O/X M159B
COM LIT 2AW
COM LIT 2BW
COM LIT 2CW
COM LIT 2DW
COM LIT 4CW
COM LIT 4DW
COM LIT 10A
COM LIT 10B
COM LIT 10C
ECON 1
ECON 2
ECON 11
ECON 41
ECON 101
ECON 102
ECON 103
ENG COMP A
ENG COMP 1B
ENG COMP 2
ENG COMP 2I
ENG COMP 3
ENG COMP 3SL
ENG COMP 4HW
ENG COMP 4W
ENG COMP 5W
ENG COMP 100W
ENGL 10A
ENGL 10B
ENGL 10C
GNDR 10
HIST 1A
HIST 1B
HIST 1C
HIST 8A
HIST 8B
HIST 8C
HIST M151B
HIST 159A
HIST159B
LING 1
LING 20
LING 120A
LING 120B
MGMT 1A
MGMT 1B
PHILOS 7
PHILOS 8
PHILOS 22W
PHILOS 31
POL SCI 6
POL SCI 10
POL SCI 20
POL SCI 30
POL SCI 40
POL SCI 50
PSYCH 10
PSYCH 100A
PSYCH 100B
PSYCH 110
PSYCH 115
PSYCH 120A
PSYCH 120B
PSYCH 135
PSYCH 150
RELIGN M60W
SCAND 40W
SCAND 50W
SOCIOL 1
SOCIOL 20
SOCIOL 101
SOCIOL 102
SPAN 25
SPAN 27
SPAN 42
SPAN 44
SPAN 119
SPAN 120
AAP PEER LEARNING ENROLLMENT PASSES
Effective Fall 2017, Peer Learning enrollment is divided into two assigned passes that give all students an opportunity to enroll in peer learning sessions, before an open pass for everyone. Please check MyUCLA for your individually assigned enrollment passes one week before the first week of each term.
Important: Students not enrolled in classes will be dropped from peer learning sessions.
Enrollment Queue
Beginning Wednesday of week 1 through the following Sunday, you may experience a wait time before accessing the Peer Learning system whenever the system is experiencing a high volume of Peer Learning transactions. Your individual wait time will be displayed on the screen. You may logout of MyUCLA during your wait time and your position in the queue will be preserved. However, it is critical that you return to the Peer Learning page and are present before your wait time expires, otherwise, you will be placed at the end of the queue and assigned a new wait time.
In order to allow sufficient time to wait in the queue and to complete the enrollment process, it is highly recommended that you login to MyUCLA and visit the Pear Learning page as close to the beginning of each of your assigned pass times as possible. You must complete your enrollment transactions before the end of your pass time.
Help keep wait times short for everyone! Once you have completed your Peer Learning Enrollment, please refrain from returning to the MyUCLA Peer Learning Page until your next pass begins.
First Peer Learning Enrollment Pass
During first pass, students may enroll in peer learning for one class. This gives all students a better chance to obtain at least some Peer Learning. Students who do not enroll in a session during their first pass must wait until their second pass to enroll.
Second Peer Learning Enrollment Pass
During second pass, students may enroll in peer learning for up to two classes
Open Peer Learning Enrollment Pass
Once the two initial assigned passes are completed, all AAP students will have an opportunity to add or drop sessions through the end of the third week.
Students are not allowed to enroll before their specified enrollment pass time(s). Enrollment pass times are assigned based on your year of entry to UCLA. Appointment times are randomly assigned within pass periods that are prioritized by group in the following order:
- New students
- Second year students
- Third year students
- Fourth year (or older) students
How to SIGN UP for AAP Peer Learning Sessions
- Access the MyUCLA Peer Learning feature by either of the following ways:
Click the Peer Learning link: http://my.ucla.edu/directLink.aspx?featureID=152&u=1Or
Log on to MyUCLA and click the “ACADEMICS” tab. In the “Advising and Academic Services” section, click “Peer Learning.”
- Read the terms of agreement. If you agree, check the box for each section, then click “I Agree.”
- Select the appropriate term from the menu in the upper-right corner (e.g. Fall 2017).
- Select AAP from the Unit menu in the top-left corner, if not already selected.
- In the PEER LEARNING menu, click FIND A SESSION.
- Click on the subject area you want to enroll in (e.g. Physics), then select a course.
- If no session time matches your schedule, click the “request an alternate time” link.
- If the course you would like is not listed, we encourage you to request the course using the WISH LIST function.
If you have any questions about how to sign up, please come visit us in 1214 Campbell Hall or give us a call at 310.206.7771.
Many students worry about using Peer Learning, thinking that it’s remedial. Perhaps you are one. Here are some reasons students give for not using AAP Peer Learning workshops and our responses to them.
Reason #1: I don’t need Peer Learning sessions because I’m not in academic difficulty.
Our program is broader than trouble-shooting or remedy-seeking. AAP Peer Learning sessions are designed to enhance your learning–even if you are an “A” student. Learning is enriched if it takes place in a social context where you can test your understanding in dialogue with others. Everyone can benefit from seeing how others view things, hearing responses to one’s own ideas and the ideas of others, and receiving encouragement from one’s peers. Peer Learning sessions give you a place to assume the role of instructor as well as learner; and it introduces you to a network of other students. Of course, if you are having trouble understanding class material, Peer Learning sessions are a fine place to seek assistance. We know that people sometimes feel stigmatized when they ask for help, but it’s important to recognize that you don’t need to handle everything alone. Working with a Peer Learning Facilitator does not detract from whatever you accomplish.
Reason #2: I don’t want to depend on others.
Peer Learning sessions are designed not only to strengthen your academic skills, but to cultivate your confidence and self-reliance. Peer Learning Facilitators will help you articulate your ideas, not impose their own. They will help you view your work critically and guide you to look for options. Peer Learning sessions are student-centered. We encourage you and the PLF to discuss expectations, to examine the Peer Learning session relationship, and to work on that relationship as you work together on academic material.
Reason #3: I don’t have time for Peer Learning sessions.
Time is at a premium at the university. The quarter system is demanding. Our sessions will help you get started quicker and become more organized and focused, all of which should generate enthusiasm in your work.
Reason #4: I had a bad experience with Peer Learning sessions.
Perhaps you have had a bad experience with Peer Learning sessions. That does happen. Things can go wrong in human relationships. Maybe it was a personality conflict, or perhaps your expectations were different from the PLF’s. Whatever the reason, we urge you to try Peer Learning sessions again. Bad experiences are the rare exception in our program.
Reason #5: If I want Peer Learning sessions, I can use my friends.
We think it’s good for you to get together with other students and encourage you to do just that whenever you can. But we think you’ll find it useful to develop a relationship centered on our Peer Learning sessions. For one thing, friends may not always be available; or such sessions may have more of a drop-in quality to them than a sustained one. An ongoing Peer Learning session relationship, with a trained PLF, guided by AAP’s educational philosophy, offers you an avenue to academic excellence. In closing, though we urge you to use AAP Peer Learning sessions for a number of reasons, one very important reason remains: this program belongs to you–the students. It was formed by students like yourself, and it has been passed on to you. 90% of the Peer Learning Facilitators are AAP students like yourself. If AAP Peer Learning sessions are to continue to meet your needs, it is extremely important that you help shape its direction by your active participation.
PEER LEARNING UNIT ADMINISTRATIVE TEAM
Ifeoma Amah, Ph.D.
Director
1101B Campbell Hall
(310) 206-2659
Emmanuel Owaka, M.S.
Assistant Director and Lab Coordinator of the Math and Sciences Lab
1201B Campbell Hall
(310) 206-9618
Bianca Muonekwu
Lab Coordinator of the Humanities and Social Sciences Lab
(310) 794-5093
Axel Hernandez
Assistant to the Director/Office Manager
1214 Campbell Hall
(310) 206-7771
HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES LAB PEER LEARNING SUPERVISORS
Economics & Management: Ricardo Govea
English Composition: Javier Prieto
Humanities: Michelle Cho
Psychology: Melissa Salgado
Social Sciences: Asya Grigoryan
MATH AND SCIENCES LAB PEER LEARNING SUPERVISORS
Chemistry: Ava Mousavi and Sean Ghiam
Earth Sciences and Computer Programming: Kristi Trinh
Life Sciences: Michael Le
Mathematics & Statistics: Clarissa Gomez and Brandon Ho
Physics: Diana Nielsen