Honors 100 Peer Educating: Continuing Community Engagement in the Honors Program
Spring 2015
As a sophomore, my choice to become a peer educator was largely about challenging myself to take a risk—to leave my comfort zone and take on a set of leadership responsibilities I had never experienced before. The passion and enthusiasm that drove me to take that risk and follow-through with it was my desire to be a part of and contribute back to the Honors community that has done so much to support me and influence my journey at UW. Honors 100 provided a meaningful experience and connection to an upperclassman mentor for me as a freshman, and I wanted to extend that to a new cohort of incoming freshman by serving as a resource and mentor for them.
Returning as a second-time peer educator this year, the first change that was evident to me was my new confidence in myself as a leader and teacher. I had left the seminar preparation course at the end of the previous quarter full of questions and self-doubts, despite my determination to go through with it. Actively serving as a Peer Educator in the classroom seemed to challenge every natural leadership tendency I had. I am analytical and detail-oriented. I tend to listen to what others have to say and quietly and gradually formulate my own thoughts in my head, pore over lessons plans--reviewing and revising them to my own standards of perfection. Standing up in front of a class of my peers and engaging them for 80 minutes, facilitating discussion amongst them, attempting to draw in their attention despite my quiet demeanor—those were challenges for me. They engaged very different styles of leadership than the ones I was naturally inclined too—and I had to find a balance between what I was comfortable with and fulfilling my role as a peer educator. There were plenty of scenarios that could have gone better, but I got through the quarter finding I could draw on my strengths as a reliable planner, caring and respectful peer, and thoughtful connector. One thing I learned from being a part of last year’s community of peer educators was that we all brought different personalities and styles to our teaching, and each our own strengths and weaknesses along with those. I think it’s being able to look back at the experience in hindsight—having done it—that has given me a formerly unfamiliar sense of confidence going into this experience again.
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A hand-out I created during the PE Spring Seminar as a teaching tool for the Honors Program's Experiential Learning component. The tool outlines resources available on campus and opportunities for involvement to help students get started.
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My experience in the program last year has necessarily been a huge influence on my participation and learning in the preparation seminar this Spring. Again I came into the PE program this year excited about the opportunity to welcome new freshmen to UW and support them through a time of transition that I myself struggled with. Learning that I would be teaching 2nd year students instead was at first a bit of a disappointment for me, feeling that I had lost that chance to connect with students who might be going through an experience I could relate to. I knew nothing of the experience of 2nd-year-admits in Honors, and the idea of teaching sophomores was a little bit intimidating to me. By their second year they already know their way around UW—what can I have to offer them besides the information about the Honors curriculum itself? I recognized it—first of all—as part of my responsibility to the Honors Program, as a Peer Educator, to step up to fill the need that was being asked of me in leading the 2nd year section. And as I thought more about it, I came to recognize it as a new opportunity for growth and learning. Part of my philosophy as a lifelong learner is acknowledging that we all have something to learn from each other. I can introduce my 2nd year students to Honors with that in mind, focusing on the values of community and engagement in their lives and education which I feel are central to the Honors program. I’m now looking forward into the Autumn Quarter anticipating an entirely different learning experience and set of challenges. I still have a lot of room to improve in my own confidence being comfortable in the role of a peer educator. I intend to approach the Fall with the goal of learning a lot from my students and encouraging them to learn from each other as well.
This quarter in the preparation seminar has given me another perspective on leadership as a Peer Educator. As one of our returning PEs, I’ve realized that I have something to contribute to new PEs in the program, and that’s what I’ve enjoyed most about returning to the PE community this Spring. The PE cohort last year became a support-system for us all as we taught our classes in the Fall, but now as one of the PEs having had experience teaching Honors 100 before, I feel I have a part to play in establishing that support system intentionally among us. I’ve found the working groups to be a valuable part of this, since they’ve allowed us to rely on a few of our peers intentionally as team members. Hearing the thoughts of new PEs has given me ideas to incorporate into my own lesson plans and new perspectives to consider in teaching. Working on my Husky Leadership Certificate alongside this course, I’ve come to define myself as a leader by three identities that encompass my personal approach and philosophy regarding leadership: being an inclusive collaborator, a dutiful contributor, and a thoughtful connector. Having the opportunity to work alongside, share some of my own experience, and connect with the new peer educators in the program this year has allowed me to embrace all three themes of my own leadership style and consider my impact as a leader in our PE community even before Honors 100 starts in the Fall.
This quarter in the preparation seminar has given me another perspective on leadership as a Peer Educator. As one of our returning PEs, I’ve realized that I have something to contribute to new PEs in the program, and that’s what I’ve enjoyed most about returning to the PE community this Spring. The PE cohort last year became a support-system for us all as we taught our classes in the Fall, but now as one of the PEs having had experience teaching Honors 100 before, I feel I have a part to play in establishing that support system intentionally among us. I’ve found the working groups to be a valuable part of this, since they’ve allowed us to rely on a few of our peers intentionally as team members. Hearing the thoughts of new PEs has given me ideas to incorporate into my own lesson plans and new perspectives to consider in teaching. Working on my Husky Leadership Certificate alongside this course, I’ve come to define myself as a leader by three identities that encompass my personal approach and philosophy regarding leadership: being an inclusive collaborator, a dutiful contributor, and a thoughtful connector. Having the opportunity to work alongside, share some of my own experience, and connect with the new peer educators in the program this year has allowed me to embrace all three themes of my own leadership style and consider my impact as a leader in our PE community even before Honors 100 starts in the Fall.