The National Scholar Foundation is excited to announce the 2017 National Peer Tutor Scholarship Program!

Our mission is to advance equity in educational opportunities and excellence in academic achievement for all K-12 students. Through our extensive research, we have identified peer tutoring as a powerful tool in increasing academic performance and closing the growing achievement gap in education. The National Peer Tutor Scholarship Program serves to recognize and reward the work of outstanding middle and high school peer tutors.The scholarship is also an investment in future leaders who will use their college educations to further contribute to our mission and positively impact education.

Members of our National Peer Tutor Classes have gone on to attend some of the top universities in the country as well as continue to impact their schools and communities. Our 2015 National Peer Tutor of the Year Finalist writes about his peer tutoring experience: “I'm extremely proud of the strides he made that summer, but I am most proud of the friendship we formed, the trust that I earned, and the seed I planted about college...His school has inspired me to use politics to find policy changes that will give all students the opportunity to escape poverty.”

This year we hope to expand the reach of our scholarship program and continue to recognize the best and brightest students for their peer tutoring efforts as well as future potential in being leaders of great change.

We encourage all 6-12th grade students to apply. The application consists of a student information form, essay, and recommendation. The essay asks students to: in 250-650 words, share a peer tutoring experience that demonstrates why you should earn the title "National Peer Tutor of the Year." The Scholarship Committee will evaluate applicants based on the following criteria:

• Character- A consistent demonstration of respect, empathy, humility, maturity, and generosity as a peer tutor.
• Leadership- A relentless determination to go above and beyond the call of duty to impact change through peer tutoring.
• Scholarship- A dedication to learning and a passion for sharing knowledge.
• Service- A commitment to serving the community through peer tutoring.

Please review our Scholarship Page for more details. All application materials are due by March 1. Feel free to Contact Us with any questions. 

Happy New Year!

Michael & Team

The following article was authored by Freya Proudman, NSF leadership team member as well as 2016 National Peer Tutor of the Year.

Different learning strategies work best for different students. It is important that peer tutors are able to adapt and change their lesson plans based on the needs and strategies that are going to prove most effective to helping the tutee. For example, if the tutee is more of a visual learning, a peer tutor may try to implement more visual learning activities into the meeting sessions.

Below is a list of different types of learners including methods that could implemented into tutor sessions that best support this type of learning style.

Visual Learners learn through images and pictures. These types of learners enjoy being able to physically see something that allows them to understand better.

• Draw images
  • This method works great for trying to memorize definitions or vocabulary words. Have students draw a picture next to the words or concepts they are trying to learn so that they can associate that concept with a given image to improve understanding.
• When explaining concepts use hand gestures
  • When verbally explaining a concept to a visual learning tutee, try using specific hand gestures for each concept. Then whenever mentioning that same topic repeat the same hand gesture so the tutee can associate your body language and hands with that concept.
• Color code
  • When having to read or write, visual learners can benefit from having a color code. For example, the student could write or highlight every vocabulary word in red, every definition in blue, and every explanation in green. This can help with organization and allow tutees to associate a given color with a concept.

Verbal Learners learn by reading and interacting with text or writing.

• White boards
  • During meeting sessions, ask your tutee different comprehension questions and have them write their answers down on a whiteboard or a piece of paper.
• Practice quizzes
  • If there is time before the meeting session, create a practice-like test that tutees could take. This will allow them to understand where in the subject matter are the concepts they understand very well, and the concepts they may need to review.
• Annotation
  • This strategy works great if a tutee needs to interpret a visual (such as an image, graph, or chart), or the tutee needs to listen to a recording and understand. Have the tutee annotate or write down explanations beside the visuals that they can refer to later that explain the visuals to them. While listening to an audio tape or watching a video, have the tutee write down notes to themselves that they can refer to later.
• Repetition
  • If tutees are struggling to memorize explanations or definition, have them write it down and copy it repeatedly. This act of repetition will allow them to better remember the concepts.

 
Auditory Learners learn by hearing and speaking.

• Explain concepts out loud and clearly
  • When explaining concepts to the tutee, explain them outloud rather than having them read an explanation. As the tutor, it is important to explain things slowly, clearly and in a logical order so that the listening tutee can follow along in your explanation.
• Audio recordings
  • With the consent of the tutor, allow the tutee to audio record the tutor explaining a concept. Later, the tutee can replay this audio recording to review the concepts the tutor explained during their meeting.
• Come up with mnemonic devices
  • For example “PEMDAS” is a mnemonic device used in math to help students remember the order of operations. Each letter in PEMDAS stands for a different operation (P is parentheses, E is exponents, and so on). Tutors and tutees can work together to come up with their own devices like this to remember different concepts.
• Use the subject material in a song
  • Have the tutee chose a tune they known well (such as a nursery rhyme). Work together to write your own lyrics to this tune while incorporating subject matter and explanations into the song. This way, if the tutee can remember the little song, they can better recall different concepts.

 
Kinesthetic Learners learn by doing. Hands-on activities are the most effective for these types of learners.

• White boards
  • During meeting sessions, ask your tutee different comprehension questions and have them write their answers down on a whiteboard and hold them up to show you their answer.
• True or False questions activity
  • Ask the tutee different true or false questions. If the tutee thinks the answer is true then have them walk to one side of the room, if the tutee thinks the answer is false have them walk to the other side. (This could also work with having them stand up or sit down) This method is great for getting tutees active while still reviewing concepts.
• Games (please note that many of these games require the tutor to do some preparation before the meeting session)
  • There is a wide variety of games that can be played to help review concepts. Please note that not all games yield themselves to every type of subject material. Some examples of learning games are writing many different questions on a inflatable beach ball. Pass the beachball to your tutee and when they catch it, have them answer the question that their right thumb is touching.
  • A matching game also works well to review different material. Using flashcards, write a vocabulary word on one flashcard and write the definition on another flashcard. Lay all the vocabulary word cards on a table, and give the tutee the definition cards and ask them to match each definition with the corresponding vocabulary word. This activity does not have to be used just for vocabulary words and definitions but can also be used with matching concepts to explanations.
  • Another activity that works great especially for foreign language learners is to write each verb the tutee may need to memorize on a different slip of paper and place it in a jar. Then have them pick a verb out a jar and roll a dice. If they roll a one, they have to conjugate the verb in the “I” form, if they roll a two, they have to conjugate the verb in the “you” form, and so on.

The following article was authored by Natalie Monzavifar, NSF leadership team member as well as 2015 and 2016 National Peer Tutor of the Year Finalist.
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When trying to start a peer-tutoring program at a school, there are several important factors to consider. Here is a 15-step outline to help students looking to create a peer tutoring program get started:

1. Develop a basic plan on how the program will work and how it can be organized.
2. Meet with the administration of your school including your principal, director, school counselors, etc. They can help you begin to institute your plans.
3. Find a faculty advisor that is willing to supervise and/or assist with the creation of the program.
4. Gather a group of passionate students and/or friends who would like to participate as tutors for the program.
5. Reach out to the student body for any more interested students who would like service or leadership opportunities as tutors.
6. Draft a website and/or public access domain where information can be stored.
7. Start reaching out for any students who might be interested as tutees.
8. Use email, flyers, social media postings- everything you can do to advocate for the program.
9. Have an area available where students are able to submit requests for tutoring (either online or near the front office, easily accessible)
10. Pair students with tutors that tutor in that specific subject and are available for the times that the student is.
11. Allow tutors to communicate and organize sessions with their tutees independently, and serve as a source of guidance to further community leadership and accountability.
12. Follow up with students and tutors and make sure things are running smoothly.
13. When the program starts to grow, look for potential candidates for leadership positions.
14. Create prizes and certificates for tutors that participate in the program (Tutor of the Month, Most Subjects Tutored, Most Sessions, Best Feedback, etc); create t-shirts, host celebratory holiday or end of year thank-you banquets/ appreciation evenings to instill a sense of community and show the gratitude the school has for the tutors. 
15. Encourage all peer tutors to apply to the National Peer Tutor Scholarship Program!

The following peer tutoring success story was written by a member of the National Peer Tutor Class of 2016.

At the beginning of the year we had all feared even the thought of it, but now it was really here. The Advanced Placement Biology midterm dawned just 3 weeks away from all of the anxious students. “Plasmodesmata, Signal Transduction Pathways, Golgi Apparatuses!” I heard students panicking in the hallways while screaming forgotten terminology. I had been enrolled through the guidance department as a peer tutor and often helped students in foreign languages, math, and science. A few days later, my AP Biology teacher had personally requested for me to help a fellow student prepare for the upcoming test. Meeting for the first time after school for 2 hours on a Friday, the student and I traveled back in time to the very first unit of the school year: Biomolecules. Something I rely on as a tutor is how I can explain complex topics as a situation that a student would understand, usually by the use of analogies. I pondered in my head for a few moments, “How can I explain protein folding as something that doesn’t even involve proteins?” Suddenly I realized, who knows more about long lunch lines than a high school student? The student, although a little confused why I was suddenly asking her about her lunch time habits, told me that she always stood in the lunch line. I asked her to imagine that the people in the lunch line were each a different amino acid, the small units that make up a protein. The primary level of protein folding has to do with the arrangement of people in the lunch line. Then, say you are towards the back of the line and you notice your friend somewhere around the middle. You wave hello and call out to your friend sparking a conversation. Naturally you want to move closer to your friend so, the line begins to curve depicting the secondary level of protein folding. Once, the line starts to bend and curve, more students start having conversations, or creating bonds, between them. Now having interactions between several people in the lunch line, the structure is now at its tertiary level of folding. You notice another friend in the other lunch line, and you want to bring them into your conversation as well. Now, not only do you have a protein in the quaternary level, but also a very big blob of unorganized lunch lines. Applying what we have learned in class to concepts and examples that students can relate to in their daily life, makes topics easier to understand. I encourage students to create their own analogies to explain ideas that they may struggle with. Being a track star, the student applied her understanding of energy maintenance to create analogies to help them remember the differences between endergonic and exergonic reactions. This way, students are not trying to memorize definitions of concepts that they do not understand. Creating connections between the academic world and their personal lives and previous knowledge can help them to remember and fully comprehend ideas. Many people believe that when you are a tutor, you just have to tell people how to do things. Being a tutor does not mean providing another student with all the answers, it means helping them to find the answers themselves. After receiving her midterm grade back, the student came running into the guidance office and with the biggest smile on her face told me that they had scored their highest grade all year in biology. This was one of the most incredible moments because, not only have you helped a student with their immediate challenges, but you have helped them realize how they can help themselves in the future.

On May 25, 2016, NSF Founder and CEO Michael Nock delivered his Valedictorian Farewell Address to the Wake Early College of Health and Sciences Class of 2016. His speech is available below:

The Committee on Selections is proud to announce the National Peer Tutor Class of 2016. Peer Tutors of the the Class of 2016 were selected from a large and diverse group of highly qualified applicants for their distinguished demonstration of scholarship, service, leadership, and character as a peer tutor. We would like to thank all applicants for taking the time to apply; we would like to congratulate the Class of 2016 on their incredible accomplishments as peer tutors and leaders within their school communities. Members of the Class will be contacted within the next few weeks regarding their awards. 

National Peer Tutor of the Year Winner

Name: Freya Proudman
Grade: 10
State: Massachusetts 

National Peer Tutor of the Year Finalists

Name: Johnna Gadomski
Grade: 12
State: Georgia

Name: Zachary McNulty
Grade: 12
State: Oregon 

Name: Natalie Monzavifar
Grade: 10
State: North Carolina

Name: Joseph Ross
Grade: 12
State: Missouri 
​
National Peer Tutor of the Year Honorable Mentions
 
Name: Sean Gallagher
Grade: 12
State: Illinois
 
Name: Caryn Hannapel
Grade: 12
State: Michigan
 
Name: Jamie Helberg
Grade: 12
State: California
 
Name: Zenaida Huerta
Grade: 12
State: California

Name: Kimberly Lifton
Grade: 12
State: Massachusetts
 
​Name: Katherine Mueller
Grade: 11
State: North Carolina

Name: Thalia Nunez
Grade: 12
State: New York

Name: Sanjana Rao
Grade: 12
State: North Carolina
 
Name: Yaseen Shurbaji
Grade: 12
State: Oklahoma
 
Name: Nadja Zakula-Kostadinova
Grade: 12
State: Virginia

Founder and CEO Michael Nock was recognized by the Wake County Public School System, the largest school district in North Carolina and the 17th largest school district in the United States, school board as the Valedictorian of the Wake Early College of Health and Sciences Class of 2016 on Tuesday May 3, 2016. Michael is graduating with a high school diploma as well as an associate in science degree from Wake Tech Community College. He will be attending Harvard College in the fall as a member of the Class of 2020. He will be studying neurobiology and economics while at Harvard. To learn more, please visit: ​http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/education/wake-ed-blog/article75457922.html

The following peer tutoring success story was written by a member of the NSF Peer Tutoring Scholarship Class of 2015. 
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At first, he was difficult. We would sit in the corner of the classroom, and he would look me in the eyes point blank and refuse to do his math. I did not let that deter me as I returned day after day. I arrived one morning expecting it to be the same, but by the time I drove home I knew José wanted to work in the music industry, was a passionate Giants fan, and struggled making friends since immigrating here. From then on, we were more than a teacher and a student. We were friends. He was open to my help and his math skills improved significantly with countless hours of multiplication facts and fraction manipulation. I'm extremely proud of the strides he made that summer, but I am most proud of the friendship we formed, the trust that I earned, and the seed I planted about college. As an immigrant from San Salvador, José did not think college was attainable. As the days went by, I shared my excitement about college and I could see his perception changing. I hope he will act upon the seed I planted.

My path to José and his school started with a book drive through my high school leadership program where I observed rundown buildings and outdated computers in a school just 20 miles from my home. I contacted the school's principal and established a summer tutoring program, recruiting several peers to tutor with me. Four weeks of on-line math programs, reading challenges, and befriending students was insufficient; I wanted to do more. Their "Level Up Academy" on Saturday mornings provided me that opportunity, so again I recruited my friends and together we have tutored over 250 hours.

José's school opened my eyes to the disparity between schools and communities separated by just twenty miles. The difficulties these students face each day goes unnoticed. Too often we focus on the struggles of those in foreign countries and ignore the challenges of those in our own community. Dozens of 7th and 8th grade students at Josè's school read below a second grade level. The majority of the students are either first generation Americans or immigrants themselves, much like my father. As a poor first generation Cuban-American my father faced seemingly insurmountable challenges, but with a quality education he was able to escape poverty. I see a parallel between the students like José and my father, and I know that same potential is in these kids.
  
I'm proud of the work I put into Josè's school, but that is just step one. His school has inspired me to use politics to find policy changes that will give all students the opportunity to escape poverty. Many who want to study Political Science dream of someday living in the White House. However, I prefer to be the next Arne Duncan, not the next Frank Underwood. I owe this aspiration to my dad and one special seventh grader who struggled to speak English.