*2.1.4 Peer led team learning*

In peer-led team learning (PLTL), students attend workshops that are led by a trained peer facilitator outside of class. The PLTL workshops are aligned with class topics in the curriculum as coordinated by the instructor or an educational specialist. Three quantitative studies were reviewed: Both studies were of PLTL and non-PLTL students in gateway biology courses. The first study was conducted at a private university in eastern Puerto Rico [18] and the two other studies were conducted at Syracuse University in New York [18, 19]. The researchers in each study concluded that the PLTL model contributes to the academic success of PLTL students and encourages student engagement and critical thinking resulting in academic achievement, retention, and graduation. However, students noted that they needed more than one PLTL weekly workshop [18, 19] which supports other peer-led learning studies in which sessions were more frequent than weekly or students attended multiple sessions of the same PTLT course.

### *2.1.5 Other interactions with peers*

Students can learn from interacting with peers with different viewpoints or who come from different backgrounds. In a NSSE 2022 survey [9], among first year students, 47% frequently had discussions with people with different political views, 47% frequently had discussions with people from a different economic background, and 59% frequently had discussions with people from a different race or ethnicity. This is significant because it contributes to inclusion and diversity in first-year students at the university sampled but no information was provided on senior students.

## **2.2 Interactions with faculty**

STEM faculty can provide positive faculty support to students including intellectual challenge and stimulation, opportunities to discuss coursework outside of class and feedback about academic work, advice about educational programs and graduate study, and other activities. STEM student interactions with faculty can prove valuable in such activities as course goals and requirements, research projects, career plans, and STEM exam wrappers. As noted in **Figure 2**, faculty is involved with STEM students and leaders beyond the classroom. Specifically, as part of faculty oversight of peer supplemental instruction faculty select and train peer leaders, provide weekly mentoring, and conduct professional development workshops. There is a connection between faculty mentorship and research such that STEM students are able to establish a science identity to enroll, persist, and graduate timely. In STEM exam wrappers, after exams, students assess how they did in problem areas so that instructors will know any problems and respond to these evaluations so that it helps the students on the next exams during the course [20, 21].
