This two-year LEAF project entails a robust, embedded mental health, accessibility, community building, and academic peer support system in each of the 13/15 sections of English A02—a multi-sectional, first-year, English pre-requisite course, and largely enrolled by non-English students. It addresses the 2018 U of T report on student mental, the increasing numbers of English A02 student requests for re-grading, extensions and accommodations, as well as the promising results of the 2021-2022 Peer Support initiative. The project also reflects pre-existing research: student well-being is supported when their learning (and motivation to learn) is supported (Keyes et al. 2012; El Ansari & Stock, 2010); that student well-being and learning are supported when students feel a sense of connection and social belonging (Lawther, 2016); and that student wellbeing in the classroom extends to student experience, especially when transitioning from high school to university (Gaston et al. 2020).
Outcomes
+ Emphasize the message that writing is a craft that can be learned and improved.
+ Help students improve their study skills.
+ Chart a path of normalcy and hope around conversations about student mental health, well-being, and disability.
+ Foster a sense of community and belonging among the cohorts of English A02 students.
+ Help English students feel and stay motivated about English A02 more specifically and their learning experiences more broadly.
+ Create a consistent dialogue among students, faculty, and staff around holistic approaches to student accessibility, mental health and well-being at the tri-campus level.
+ Produce resources and pedagogical materials for future peer consultants and A02 instructors and students to use, namely an Accessibility and Mental Health and Wellness Manual, a Peer Consultant Training Manual, Writing-focused slides, and an annotated bibliography of academic resources.
In addition, many A02 instructors have reported higher energy and motivation levels among students, thanks to the study tips and writing life experiences shared by the academic peer consultants.
Our 2023-2024 reflects higher retention rates and our winter 2024 enrollment numbers are the highest we have ever witnessed in our 15 years of offering the course in its current form. While it is too early to deduct a cause/effect correlation, the peer support model seems to exceed our initial expectations.