PEER SUPPORT AND TUTORING

Peer Support Program

Peer Support is a program that offers peer counseling to the entire upper school. On Monday nights, small groups meet formally to discuss any issues, whether trivial or serious, that group members have on their minds. Senior leaders serve as mentors to the junior trainees within each group.

At the end of each school year, sophomores are given the opportunity to apply to become peer support trainees during their junior year. Approximately twenty-six sophomores are selected to participate in the peer support training program the following year.

At the beginning of the following year, the junior trainees and the senior leaders get to know one another during a mandatory weekend retreat away from the school environment. Each junior trainee is assigned to a senior leader who acts as a mentor, providing encouragement and guidance, while the trainee learns the skills necessary to become an effective peer leader. Juniors are trained for an entire year, one class period per week, learning basic communication skills. They are given the opportunity to truly develop and refine their skills for success as a peer support leader.

The senior year is devoted to utilizing the communication skills that have been learned as well as to focusing on more specific and advanced skills that enable peer support leaders to deal with common teen issues that may arise during the course of the year. Peer support leaders continue to receive training during one class period per week throughout their senior year.

PEER TUTORING PROGRAM

Peer tutoring provides valuable assistance on a one-on-one basis to students who are having trouble with a particular course. It is important that students not wait until just before tests or the end of a marking period to seek help; they should ask for help as soon as they recognize they are having difficulty understanding material since many courses are cumulative in nature. Students seeking a peer tutor should complete and submit a peer tutor request form. Forms are available outside Seaver 212. A peer tutor may also be requested via the Harvard‑Westlake Peer Tutoring website at http://www.hw.com/students/peertutor/.

Students who enjoy, and are doing well in, a subject may wish to become peer tutors. In the process of becoming a peer tutor, students learn a great deal about themselves, leadership, communication skills, responsibility, tolerance, and understanding individual differences and develop sensitivity about the learning process. Juniors and seniors are eligible to apply.

(from the 2008-2009 Curriculum Guide)