Nearpeer

Near-peer refers to an educational relationship in which learners are taught or assessed by someone who is slightly more advanced in training or experience, often within the same institution. It is commonly used in higher education and health professions education, and is distinguished from faculty-led instruction and traditional peer tutoring where the instructor is at the same level as the learner.

Near-peer instructors are typically senior students, residents, or fellows who facilitate structured small-group sessions, clinical skills workshops, OSCE practice, and exam review. They operate within a defined curriculum, with clear learning objectives and assessment criteria, and are supervised or mentored by faculty or seasoned clinicians. Programs usually include training for the instructors, feedback mechanisms, and alignment with broader educational goals.

Benefits and evidence: Near-peer education can improve accessibility, learner engagement, and the development of teaching skills in the instructors themselves. For junior learners, it can improve knowledge, clinical skills, and confidence, and may enhance satisfaction with the learning experience. Evidence on objective examination performance is mixed and often contingent on program design, instructor preparation, and supervision.

Challenges include variable teaching quality, potential propagation of inaccuracies if materials are not standardized, the need for reliable instructor training, time demand on trainees, and the level of institutional support required to sustain programs.

Variants and scope: The terms near-peer tutoring and near-peer learning are used interchangeably in many contexts. While most common in medical education, near-peer approaches are also applied in nursing, dentistry, pharmacy, and STEM education.