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History of Supplemental Instruction
SI was created by Deanna C. Martin, Ph.D., at the University of Missouri-Kansas City in 1973. Dr. Martin was assigned the task of decreasing the attrition rate of minority students in the schools of medicine, pharmacy, and dentistry—and given a grant of $7,000 with which to do so. After initially offering SI at the health science professional schools, it was extended throughout the university.
For a more complete history of the program, see:
Widmar, G. E. (1994). Supplemental Instruction: From small beginnings to a national program. In D. C. Martin & Arendale, D. R. (Eds.), Supplemental Instruction: Increasing achievement and retention (pp. 3-10). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
After a rigorous review process in 1981, the SI Program became one of the few postsecondary programs to be designated by the U.S. Department of Education as an Exemplary Educational Program. The National Diffusion Network (NDN), the national dissemination agency for the U.S. Department of Education, provided federal funds for dissemination of SI. Although the NDN was discontinued by the U.S. government, national and international dissemination continues.
Faculty and staff from over 1500 institutions from 29 countries have been trained to implement their own SI programs. Outside the United States, SI operates in Australia, Canada, China, Denmark, Egypt, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, Mexico, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, South Africa, Sweden, United Kingdom, and the West Indies.
For Students: Facts about Supplemental Instruction (SI)
What is SI?
Supplemental Instruction, or SI, is a series of weekly review sessions for students taking historically difficult courses. SI review sessions, or "workshops", are available to all enrolled students who want to improve their understanding of course materials and their grades.
SI workshops provide a chance to get together with other members of your class to compare notes, discuss important concepts, and develop strategies for studying the subject, approaching the homework, and preparing for exams.
Who are the SI "Coaches"?
Your SI coach is a competent student or staff member recommended by someone from our faculty for this position. He or she has mastered the material that will be covered in the course. Your coach will be in class with you at every meeting (in most instances), hearing what you hear and reading what you read. What he/she will not do in SI workshops is re-teach. Instead, the job of coach is to help you understand the material that has already been presented during class. SI can help you learn the course material more thoroughly, but it is not a substitute for attending class.
What does it cost?
SI costs you nothing except your time. Assistance is free! Come as often as you like. Keep in mind, though, the statistics show that the more you come, the better your grade
What’s in it for me?
Your review sessions are informal and voluntary; no classroom credit is given for attending unless otherwise specified by the instructor. Your payoff is a better understanding of the material, enhanced study skills, and, if you attend sessions regularly, the potential for a higher grade. In our pilot program, the final exam grades for those students who attended SI workshops were as much as 29% higher than the grades of students who did not attend. Subsequent semesters of SI across all disciplines demonstrated similar results.
When do the SI workshops begin?
Your SI coach will let you know when the first SI workshop will be held. At every SI workshop session, please bring your books, notes, and all other class materials, as well as paper and a writing implement. Plan to spend an hour at a regular workshop; exam review workshops sometimes run a little longer.
For Faculty: Definition, Purpose, and Participants
Definition:
Supplemental Instruction (SI) is an academic assistance program that utilizes peer-assisted study sessions. SI sessions are regularly-scheduled, informal review sessions in which students compare notes, discuss readings, develop organizational tools, and predict test items. Students learn how to integrate course content and study skills while working together. The sessions are facilitated by "SI leaders", students who have previously done well in the course and who attend all class lectures, take notes, and act as model students.
Purpose:
- to increase retention within targeted historically difficult courses
- to improve student grades in targeted historically difficult courses
- to increase the graduation rates of students
Participants:
SI is a "free service" offered to all students in a targeted course. SI is a non remedial approach to learning as the program targets high-risk courses rather than high-risk students. All students are encouraged to attend SI sessions, as it is a voluntary program. Students with varying levels of academic preparedness and diverse ethnicities participate. There is no remedial stigma attached to SI since the program targets high-risk courses rather than high-risk students.
How SI Works:
The SI model involves key persons:
- The SI Coordinator is a trained professional who is responsible for identifying the targeted courses, gaining faculty support, selecting and training SI "coaches," as well as marketing and evaluating the program on an ongoing basis.
- The faculty members of the identified historically difficult courses invite and support SI. Faculty members screen SI leaders for content competency and approve selections as well as collaborate with the SI coaches and Coordinator on a regular basis.
- The SI coaches ("near peers") are students who have been deemed course competent and have been approved by the course instructor and the SI Coordinator. They are trained in proactive learning and study strategies as well as facilitation skills. SI coaches attend course lectures, take notes, read all assigned materials, and conduct three to five out-of-class SI sessions a week. The SI coach is the "model student," a facilitator who assists students to integrate course content and learning strategies.
- Students participating in the SI sessions, although mentioned last, are the most crucial component of SI. SI is introduced to specific historically difficult courses. These courses frequently are introductory or "gatekeeper courses" but also include upper level undergraduate courses and
- courses in professional schools.
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Fall 2009 Supplemental Instruction Coaches Workshop Information:
Resumes now being accepted for those interested in becoming an SI Coach for Spring 2010: please send in the body of an email to shannon.greer@saintleo.edu
Writing Workshops: Mondays at 9:30 a.m., Wednesdays at 3:00 p.m., & Sundays at 7:00 p.m. in the LRC Computer Lab.
For more information about SLU’s Supplemental Instruction program, please contact Shannon Greer in the Learning Resource Center (SAB 203) at ext. 8302.
Fall 2009 Workshop
Fall 2009 Supplemental Instruction Coaches Workshop Information:
Coach/Course/Time/Place
Britton Bouey / MAT 234 / Tuesdays 6:00 – 7:00 pm in LH 306
William Dentinger / MAT 161 / Tues/Thurs. 6:00 – 7:00 pm in LH 303
Christine Barabas / BIO 240 / Tuesdays 5:00 – 6:00 pm in LH 303
Nathan Peeler / HTY 121 / Mondays 6:00 – 7:00 pm in LH 119
Maya Nomoto / SSC 102 (Dr. Parker) / Tues. 5:30 – 6:30pm in LH 119
Emily Zambito / SSC 102 (Dr. McTague) / Thurs. 6 – 7:00 pm in CH 6
Thomas Kaiser / PHY 221 / Mondays 7:00- 8:30 pm in LH120
Adaixa Padron / SPA 111 / Tuesdays 7:00 – 9:00 pm in LH 119
Virginia Morales / ACC 202 / Wednesdays 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm in CH 5
Joshua Schecker / CRM 321 / Wednesday 7:00 – 8:00 pm CH 8
Travis Rathbone / IDS 300 / Tuesdays 5:00 – 6:00 pm in LH 120
Andrea Cameron / MAT 201 / Tues/Thurs. 5:30 – 6:30 pm in LH 203
Shannon Greer / PHI 101 / Thursdays 7:30 – 8:30 pm in LH 131
Shannon Greer / PHI 332 / Wednesday 6:00 - 7:00 pm in LH 131