© American Society for Engineering Education, 2010 Implementing Peer Led Team Learning in

The large lecture format found in most introductory mathematics and science courses is generally not conducive to a teaching-learning process that would allow for the development of professional skills such as team work, oral and written communication, and time management. Motivated by a successful experience in a general chemistry course, we have implemented workshops based on the Peer Led Team Learning (PLTL) model that engages every engineering student enrolled in the introductory chemistry, mathematics, and physics courses through a guided-process and inquiry-based strategy utilizing small group settings. For this purpose we replaced one hour of lecture with a two-hour small-group workshop. Workshops are guided by an advanced undergraduate peer leader who has successfully completed the course with a grade of A or B. The courses included in this project are pre-calculus, general chemistry 1 and 2, mechanics, and fields and waves. We anticipate that the implementation of PLTL will result in improvements in learning that will positively impact second year retention and success in subsequent engineering courses. One of the key factors in this approach will be the performance of peer leaders as facilitators and role models for engineering students. Peer leaders are traine