Can peer mentoring improve online teaching effectiveness? An RCT during the COVID-19 pandemic

David Hardt; Markus Nagler; Johannes Rincke

doi:10.1016/j.labeco.2022.102220

Can peer mentoring improve online teaching effectiveness? An RCT during the COVID-19 pandemic

Labour Econ. 2022 Oct:78:102220. doi: 10.1016/j.labeco.2022.102220. Epub 2022 Jul 4.

Authors

David Hardt¹, Markus Nagler², Johannes Rincke³

Affiliations

¹ University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany.
² University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, CESifo, and LASER, Germany.
³ University of Erlangen-Nuremberg and CESifo, Germany.

Abstract

Online delivery of higher education has taken center stage but is fraught with issues of student self-organization. We conducted an RCT to study the effects of remote peer mentoring at a German university that switched to online teaching due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Mentors and mentees met one-on-one online and discussed topics like self-organization and study techniques. We find positive impacts on motivation, studying behavior, and exam registrations. The intervention did not shift earned credits on average, but there is evidence for positive effects on the most able students.

Keywords: Covid-19; Higher education; Online Education; Peer Mentoring; Teaching Effectiveness.