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Peer Tutoring in Higher Education: The State of the Scholarship.

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Title: Peer Tutoring in Higher Education: The State of the Scholarship.
Authors: Sanford, Daniel R.1
Source: Learning Assistance Review (TLAR). Spring2026, Vol. 30 Issue 3, p37-77. 41p.
Subject Terms: *Tutors & tutoring, *Higher education, *Educational outcomes, *Educational attainment, *Educational equalization, *Learning, *Peer teaching, Design
Abstract: Peer tutoring is a widely implemented and empirically supported practice in higher education. What the field now lacks is not further confirmation of effectiveness, but adequate explanation. Drawing on The Handbook of Peer Tutoring and a comprehensive synthesis of empirical scholarship, this article argues that peer tutoring research must move decisively beyond validation and toward mechanism-centered explanation. Evidence that tutoring improves academic outcomes is robust; what remains underdeveloped is understanding how learning is produced within tutoring interactions, how those processes vary across contexts and populations, and how research designs can make those mechanisms visible. Organizing the literature around knowledge building as the field's explanatory center, this review consolidates findings on student learning, tutor development, interactional practices, equity, program design, training, and online modalities, and delineates the questions that should now define peer tutoring scholarship. In doing so, it reframes peer tutoring not as a collection of effective programs, but as a pedagogical system whose future depends on explanatory precision, methodological alignment, and equity-attentive design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Learning Assistance Review (TLAR) is the property of National College Learning Center Association (NCLCA) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Education Research Complete
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  Data: Peer tutoring is a widely implemented and empirically supported practice in higher education. What the field now lacks is not further confirmation of effectiveness, but adequate explanation. Drawing on The Handbook of Peer Tutoring and a comprehensive synthesis of empirical scholarship, this article argues that peer tutoring research must move decisively beyond validation and toward mechanism-centered explanation. Evidence that tutoring improves academic outcomes is robust; what remains underdeveloped is understanding how learning is produced within tutoring interactions, how those processes vary across contexts and populations, and how research designs can make those mechanisms visible. Organizing the literature around knowledge building as the field's explanatory center, this review consolidates findings on student learning, tutor development, interactional practices, equity, program design, training, and online modalities, and delineates the questions that should now define peer tutoring scholarship. In doing so, it reframes peer tutoring not as a collection of effective programs, but as a pedagogical system whose future depends on explanatory precision, methodological alignment, and equity-attentive design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Learning Assistance Review (TLAR) is the property of National College Learning Center Association (NCLCA) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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      – SubjectFull: Educational outcomes
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              Text: Spring2026
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