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The Peer Leadership Program is an organization, most often run in public high schools and four-year Universities, that looks upon upperclassmen to help ease the transition to the underclassman's respective freshmen year. The Peer Program is considered to stress communal interaction and social insight. Before meeting with smaller groups of newcomers the larger Peer Organization is trained to deal with the psychological and emotional needs the newcomers may express. Why "Peer leaders" ? There is a wealth of empirical evidence supporting the use of peer leaders; including Arthur Chickering’s work on psychosocial development among college students (1969), which clearly establishes that the peer group has a powerful effect on student development. Subsequent research from Pascarella and Terenzini (1991) and Astin (1985), has further supported this notion that students are influenced by their peers (p. 55). In his 1993 findings published in What Matters in College, Astin maintained that “the student’s peer group is the single most potent source of influence on growth and development during the undergraduate years” (pp. 398). Many educators will agree that it was this 1993 finding which served as the catalyst for the resurgence and emergence of hundreds of peer leadership programs in colleges and universities across the US and even overseas. ==The Five Stages Approach== The methodology most commonly used in training the members of Peer is known as the Five Stages Approach, which teaches Peer Leaders about the five stages of a group. It is important to note that this is the interpretation of the journey, per se, that many peer groups embark upon. The stages are: Stage One: ''Forming'', which understands that upon first creating groups, the members will be nervous. This stage remains crucial for leaders to emerge. Stage Two: ''Norming'', following ''forming'', is the stage in which group members begin to adjust to their new, institutionalized atmosphere. The Peer members themselves begin to initiate general conversation and, within time, to manifest state-sponsored curriculum upon their members. Stage Three: ''Storming'', the stage in which the freshmen begin to fight for roles in the group. Often conflict erupts emotionally as true feelings are expressed and group members learn about how others perceive them. Stage Four: ''Performing'', the point in which the group members have the capacity to feel comfortable with each other. Unlike the stage preceding it, many of the emotions felt on this level are of trust and kindness, although apathy and disinterest may also peak in certain members during this stage. Stage Five: ''Mourning and Reform'', the final stage which involves a parting of ways as group members review and reflect on the past. At the same time, they also focused on their future lives and ways that they will impart their differences upon the world. The Peer Leader must stress that it is the responsibility of the individual group members to act responsibly and morally in their future endeavors, taking care to especially stress the value of autonomy and self-direction. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Peer Leadership Program」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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