CSci Tutor Room Successfully Improves Test Scores in First Semester
The Department of Computer Science & Engineering (CS&E) introduced a new tutor room that will aid students in their first and second year computer science courses. The CSci Tutor Room provides a range of services for students to strengthen their coding skills, offering one-on-one tutoring sessions for personalized support, larger review sessions, and provides a supportive environment to help students reach their academic and career goals. The Tutor Room has two peer tutors, Nhi Dang and Sebastian Helgeson, and is supported by department faculty and staff. The Tutor Room services were made possible by a donation from Target and 2023 Give to the Max campaign donations.
Dang and Helgeson are computer science majors who will graduate in spring 2025. Dang is minoring in mathematics and is interested in the theoretical side of computer science. Helgeson is a product design minor with a robotics focus. Both Dang and Helgeson chose to become tutors because they were interested in helping students of all different backgrounds, and wanted to get more one-on-one time with students. Helgeson saw first hand how much students were struggling with going to teaching assistants (TAs), especially students joining the computer science program for the first time or with an institutional barrier that makes it more difficult to learn.
“I realized that it was such a great opportunity to give students one-on-one time to help bridge the gap between a student and a faculty member,” said Helgeson. “We serve as a teacher, a faculty, a mentor, but also a friend.”
During one-on-one appointments, Dang and Helgeson help students navigate issues, whether it’s a homework problem, a project they’re working on, or a concept they need to review. The peer tutors give review sessions for CSCI 1133, CSCI 1913, CSCI 2011, CSCI 1113, CSCI 1933, and CSCI2033, working with different professors to make sure the peer tutors are up-to-date with the lesson plan. Hosting late night tutor sessions also involves students venting about their struggles with classes and their anxieties.
When a student goes to office hours to meet with a TA, oftentimes they are one of many. Dang and Helgeson help develop a more structured study strategy for students that guarantees one-on-one help. The Tutor Room also offers the ability for a wide variety of office hours in 30-, 60-, and 90-minute sessions.
“During Tutor Room office hours, they can ask all of the questions they have, and they can have someone they can talk to and vent to,” said Helgeson. “Additionally, we are offering large-scale student sessions that TAs can also do, but we’re more specialized. We are essentially students taking on this large lecture-scale format that you would often see with professors. We are a friendly face that they can go to and feel more comfortable talking to afterwards.”
Over the fall semester, there were a total of 108 attended appointments, with 90 hours of tutoring, and hosted review sections that totaled about 300 attendees. There are a number of students who are repeat customers and attend in multiple semesters. Students who utilize the Tutor Room have seen improvements in their grades, and providing large group study sessions has improved test scores.
“The CSci Tutor Room is more of a peer support system where students are encouraged to make mistakes without fear of judgement,” said Dang. “We are here to create a respectful, reliable, and encouraging space that promotes every student's growth and confidence.”
Peer tutors are not advisors and are not able to look at student records, however, Helgeson’s and Dang’s review sessions have been immensely popular. Helgeson’s first review session for CSCI 1933 filled a 50-person classroom with 70 students attending. The next review session they booked a 100-student classroom and 140 students came.
“Peer tutors provide more personalized support for students by helping and cooperating with the teaching and faculty staff from special classes,” said Dang. “We have heard from faculty that they are glad the Tutor Room is there to help with the review sections and to provide more tutoring for students. The CSci Tutor Room is a valuable resource for students of various backgrounds, from first generation students, to non-native English speakers. The CSci Tutor Room provides a supportive environment where students can familiarize themselves with U.S. academic expectations, practice writing professional emails, and learn how to effectively communicate with both professors and teaching assistants. The peer tutors are literally their peers, and have similar experiences and can provide support; we are just friends. We are not involved in grading, so the CSci Tutor Room is a low-pressure environment where students can freely ask questions and share concerns. The tutors are equipped to connect students with appropriate resources that support their academic and personal well-being.”
“There is no shame in going to the Tutor Room,” said Helgeson. “We’ve spoken to a lot of first generation students or those whose first language is not English, but tutoring is for everyone. I have tutored many people that felt a little ashamed about tutoring, and I want to make sure that students know there is no shame in this. We are a resource for students, so never feel bad booking a tutoring appointment. We offer as much help as you need, and we are always here.”