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Can Peer Mentoring Improve Online Teaching Effectiveness? An RCT during the Covid-19 Pandemic

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  • David Hardt
  • Markus Nagler
  • Johannes Rincke

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 we demonstrate strong positive effects on the most able students. In contrast to prior research, effects were more pronounced for male students.

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  • David Hardt & Markus Nagler & Johannes Rincke, 2020. "Can Peer Mentoring Improve Online Teaching Effectiveness? An RCT during the Covid-19 Pandemic," CESifo Working Paper Series 8671, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_8671
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    Cited by:

    1. Hardt, David & Nagler, Markus & Rincke, Johannes, 2023. "Tutoring in (online) higher education: Experimental evidence," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    2. Carlana, Michela & La Ferrara, Eliana, 2021. "Apart but Connected: Online Tutoring and Student Outcomes during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IZA Discussion Papers 14094, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    3. Hashibul Hassan & Asad Islam & Abu Siddique & Liang Choon Wang, 2024. "Telementoring and Homeschooling During School Closures: a Randomised Experiment in Rural Bangladesh," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 134(662), pages 2418-2438.
    4. Maria De Paola & Francesca Gioia & Vincenzo Scoppa, 2022. "Online Teaching, Procrastination And Students’ Achievement: Evidence From Covid-19 Induced Remote Learning," Working Papers 202202, Università della Calabria, Dipartimento di Economia, Statistica e Finanza "Giovanni Anania" - DESF.
    5. Agurto, M. & Bazan, M. & Hari, S. & Sarangi, S., 2021. "Women in Engineering: The Role of Role Models," GLO Discussion Paper Series 975, Global Labor Organization (GLO).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    online education; EdTech; COVID-19; mentoring; higher education;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I20 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - General
    • I23 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Higher Education; Research Institutions
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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