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Panther Academic Support Services, or PASS,
offers free academic support to UWM undergraduate students.
Our services, which include Supplemental Instruction, tutoring,
and academic coaching and resources,
are available for over 120 100- and 200-level classes.
All of our services are convenient and held at multiple locations campus-wide,
including the Golda Meir Library, Student Success Center,
and the UWM residence halls.
PASS also provides online and blended tutoring services.
PASS' wide range of services makes it easy for students to get involved.
Our tutors and SI leaders are top students
who understand course concepts and how to study in college.
Supplemental Instruction is awesome.
Beneficial
It's inspiring
Great, in-depth experience
Effective
One thing I think is really unique about PASS,
specifically with the Supplemental Instruction program
is that you see the tutor in the class.
The tutor is actually making a connection with the teacher
and knowing exactly what's happening in class, which is going
to add to the success of the student who comes to use our services.
So many students in a big, large classroom don't have the opportunity
to ask the questions that they really need to ask in order to master the material,
so SI and tutoring really gives those students a chance
to approach the material in a more individual way.
And also it gives them the chance to interact with other students in their class
that they might not have the opportunity to interact with,
so that they can learn from each other, and not just by themselves.
PASS tutoring is a form of assistance where students can meet
with a peer tutor once a week, sometimes twice a week, for about an hour each time,
in small groups, generally between one and five students.
What it is, it is a supportive place for the student to review the material
with another person, with a person who has already taken the class
and is an expert in that class and enjoys discussing the material,
and explaining the material, and making sure that the student can explain
and understand the material also.
We have great tutors, they're very knowledgeable,
and the great thing about our tutors is that they've taken the classes that we tutor,
so they understand where the students are coming from, and their main goal
is to help peers succeed.
The PASS online environment is what I would call a synchronous environment,
meaning that tutors and students interact at the same time, just from different locations.
We use something called a web conferencing platform, that allows the tutor and students
to communicate via voice, to communicate via type chat, to use interactive white boards,
to bring in videos; a whole assortment of different features.
Residence hall tutoring is very convenient for students.
It takes place in the Residence Halls, in the evening.
It helps students with their math classes, as well as their composition,
and it's convenient for them because while they're working on their homework
in their rooms, if they have difficulties, they can just walk in
and ask a tutor a question.
I believe that the most important aspect of Supplemental Instruction
is that the SI leader works closely with the professor
to insure that the students achieve academic success.
They hold four review sessions a week, they also hold online reviews
so the students can review the archives.
They're available for questions during their walk-in hours.
And they've been in the class, already been a successful student.
Many of them are majoring in the course, so they share their enthusiasm
about Supplemental Instruction with the students.
Well when you reach a class size as big as mine,
and I know that 140 isn't the biggest, I mean, there are some student courses, I guess, even larger,
but when you reach that number you're really stretched for the ability
to help students in grasping the material and doing well in the course.
It's only a help, right? It's all about student success.
And the SI being present in the class, being a part of the class
and really providing all this additional learning opportunity
and reinforcing the course content, that's invaluable.
Well, one of the things I would say is that there is an added value
to your course from SI. So if some other professor were to ask me,
"What's your experience with SI?" I'd say particularly for those students
who are early in their career, it's another way of reaching them,
it's another way of reinforcing the material.
I would encourage them highly to do it, automatically.
I mean, as far as I'm concerned, it's something that I impress
the first day of class, as soon as we have it.
So I encourage them highly to take that.