EAL support group provides help for nursing students who have English as an Additional Language (EAL). There are many amazing programs offered to help students succeed, including: workshops that assist with writing, pronunciation, communication and group gatherings and the Peer Mentor program.  Mentors are the peer tutors who are nursing students  volunteering with the EAL group. Nursing faculty from the EAL group partner these mentors with students who require help to work together on subjects they find challenging.  Peer mentoring could benefit students who receive this guidance, and even students who serve as Peer Mentors.

Firstly, the Peer Mentor program provides a lot of academic support. Students get together with their mentors every week for a couple of hours to receive extra assistance in studying, and for discussing the information given in regular classes. Secondly, Peer Mentors can help students review for exams by going through class material and answering questions. This preparation helps students to experience less stress and have more confidence in taking exams. Thirdly, as we know, nursing courses are very challenging and students need to complete a lot of reading.  There is a considerable amount to memorize, as well as trying to fully understand class material.  The Peer Mentors and students can exchange their experience of effective study techniques, such as reading, time management, and preparation for exams.  For example, from one of the mentors, I learned to use a weekly calendar to manage my time and keep up with my studies and assignments. Finally, Peer Mentors are role models for other students.  They talk about their experiences in certain courses and offer strategies to deal with the difficulties faced in each course.  They also help students to enhance their strengths and give them a lot of positive feedback.  With their encouragement, the students have more confidence with their studying.

Reflecting on my personal experience, I have benefitted a lot from the Peer Mentor program. I really appreciated the support I received from many Peer Mentors. They were caring and demonstrated empathy because they understood the circumstances I was going through and the difficulties I was encountering. They gave me a lot of optimal comments and encouragement, such as saying “If I can do this, I am sure you can do it, too”. Also, Peer Mentors shared their clinical experiences and discussed the general situations that we may see during practicum. This helped me to build up knowledge and problem solving skills for clinical practicum. In addition, I have been practicing nursing skills with a Peer Mentor, like head-to-toe assessment, to enhance my nursing techniques. This is very helpful for my nursing practice. Through communicating and working together with Peer Mentors, I feel more confident about my study and nursing practicums in the future.

Besides the peer tutor program, EAL support group has many other effective activities and workshops to help their participants. Hopefully, the group can help even more EAL nursing students with their academic performance and success in their future careers.