September 14, 2015

Binh and Adam without peer at PASS Awards

When it comes to helping mentor their fellow students Binh Nham and Adam Withers stand tall at the top of the class.

The UOW pair has recently been acknowledged as category winners at the Australasian PASS (Peer Assisted Study Sessions) and Peer Learning Awards externally judged in the USA.

UOW was one of only two universities in Australia (the other being the University of Sydney) to have more than one student category winner announced at the annual awards.

The awards recognise the outstanding work that students undertake in assisting the learning and transition of their peers.

The Director of Peer Learning and the National Centre for PASS (based at UOW), Sally Rogan, said UOW’s success in these awards since their inception in 2008 was a reflection of the quality training and professional development given to students in multiple peer leader roles.

Binh Nham, an international student from Vietnam who began as a PASS Leader this year for the Faculty of Business, was successful in the New Leader category. Adam Withers, who supports students undertaking psychology subjects with the Faculty of Social Sciences, is in his second year with PASS and was successful in the Senior Leader/Mentor category. Adam has also taken on a new role as Marketing Assistant for PASS this year to further promote the benefits of peer assisted learning to students at UOW.

The judge also highly commended the nomination of Kayla Rankin, who was short listed on the basis of her excellent work as a PASS Leader and as a ResPASS Leader at Marketview and a PAC (Peer Academic Coach) in the new Learning Co -op. ResPASS is a fusion model which takes key elements of the multi-award winning PASS Program philosophy and brings it to a student residence environment.

Binh said she was honoured to represent UOW PASS and to receive the New Leader Award this year.  

“I am proud to be a PASS Leader and I feel grateful for the precious opportunity to be among such a wonderful and supportive PASS team. The skills and lessons I have learned, particularly the importance of Peer Learning, will be an essential transferable skills set for my future career.” 

Adam said he was delighted to receive the award and believed that it reflected not on himself as an individual but as a member of the PASS@UOW team.

“I am extremely lucky to be a PASS Leader and it is through the professional development and ongoing support and encouragement that I receive in this role that has allowed my leadership skills to develop and for me to be the recipient of this award.”

Ms Rogan said the success shown by UOW students at the PASS awards exemplified the wonderful contribution the University’s peer-led roles made to the learning and success of UOW students.

Meanwhile, the Australasian PASS and Peer Learning Conference will be held in Melbourne on 29 and 30 September. UOW will be represented at the conference by 11 student Leaders and five staff from the Peer Learning team. They will join delegates from across Australia and from New Zealand, Fiji, USA, Singapore, Malaysia and the People’s Republic of China.