Studying with Partners and Teams

Introduction

Studying with partners and teams which is also referred to as peer-assisted learning (PAL) is an acceptable and enjoyable method of teaching and learning. The term is characterized as the teaching activity involving individuals who belong to a similar social group and who cannot be classified as professional teachers. PAL is rooted in the concept of learning through working in groups and tutoring learners at the same level of knowledge. This teaching-learning (T/L) method is not used in full potential in many of the medical colleges in North India. The benefit of this method includes preparing the students for future educational responsibilities, establishing healthy peer-mentor relationships, and reducing the burden from faculty members. It is useful in imbibing organizational and teaching skills to both the peer-tutor and peer-tutee. It can actually help the students to feel worthwhile by contributing to medical education in a number of ways, for example by contributing to building the teaching materials such as case studies, videos, etc.