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We decided to set up PALS, peer assisted learning, at Plymouth University,
for a number of reasons. In my own mind, the most important one is actually to do with
how students learn, and the students' experience, and actually enriching that significantly.
PALS, peer assisted learning, is also very much central to the learning development philosophy
we have, and obviously those of us who are learning developers feel it's a really important
thing, to get students learning from students. There are a number of other practical reasons
why peer assisted learning is a really good idea. We have some programmes where the drop
out rate has been as high as, in some cases up to fourteen percent, and clearly that's
worrying, and it's certainly the case if we look at evidence from where PALS has been
instituted in other places, that this kind of scheme where students are talking to each
other about their experience and identifying for themselves points of potential difficulty
and providing some support for each other, it can have a very positive impact on retention.