Peer instruction is an evidence-based, interactive teaching method popularized by Harvard Professor

Eric Mazur Eric Mazur (born November 14, 1954) is a physicist and educator at Harvard University, and an entrepreneur in technology start-ups for the educational and technology markets. Mazur's research is in experimental ultrafast optics, condensed matter ph ...

in the early 1990s. Originally used in many schools, including introductory undergraduate physics classes at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

, peer instruction is used in various disciplines and institutions around the globe. It is a student-centered approach that involves flipping the traditional classroom by moving information transfer out and moving information assimilation, or application of learning, into the classroom. There is some research that supports the effectiveness of peer instruction over more traditional teaching methods, such as traditional

lecture A lecture (from Latin ''lēctūra'' “reading” ) is an oral presentation intended to present information or teach people about a particular subject, for example by a university or college teacher. Lectures are used to convey critical infor ...

. Peer instruction as a learning system involves students preparing to learn outside of class by doing pre-class readings and answering questions about those readings using another method, called Just in Time Teaching. Then, in class, the instructor engages students by posing prepared conceptual questions or ConcepTests that are based on student difficulties. The questioning procedure outlined by

is as follows: # Instructor poses question based on students' responses to their pre-class reading # Students reflect on the question # Students commit to an individual answer # Instructor reviews student responses # Students discuss their thinking and answers with their peers # Students then commit again to an individual answer # The instructor again reviews responses and decides whether more explanation is needed before moving on to the next concept. Peer instruction is now used in a range of educational institutions around the globe and in many other disciplines, including philosophy,

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...

,S.L. Chew. (2004). Using concepTests for formative assessment, Psychology Teacher Network, v14, n1, 10-12

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ea ...

, mathematics,

computer science Computer science is the study of computation, automation, and information. Computer science spans theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, information theory, and automation) to practical disciplines (includin ...

and engineering.

References

{{Reflist Evidence-based practices Educational practices