Exploring Factors Affecting Informal Peer Tutoring Process Among Pre-Clinical Medical Students of a Private Medical College

Background: Learner-mediated peer teaching and their preferred learning strategies are neglected niches in the current era of medical education due to a lack of institutional focus. Peer tutoring is a pedagogical approach incorporated into teaching and learning in higher education to promote collaborative learning. It is usually executed when students face daily learning challenges and regulate their training process with their fellows through informally planned peer tutoring sessions. The study aims to inquire how mutual learning of peers in the peer tutoring process occurs, preferably in a casual, self-determined environment. The study also examines what factors enable or hinder learners in achieving academic outcomes in knowledge, competencies, and conduct. Theoretically, it aligns the concept of arrangement for studying as a determinant of cognitive and social congruence through the scope of Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development. Method: It was an exploratory qualitative study that was conducted through purposeful sampling from learners belonging to pre-clinical years of undergraduate medical school. Four rounds of FGDs were conducted. Two rounds were conducted from both 1 ^st year and 2 ^nd year medical students. The transcribed responses were manually analyzed to extract themes. Results: Eight themes were identified, each further divided into two sub-themes to evaluate the relevance of the data with the research objectives. It was observed that student-mediated peer tutoring, specifically in a casual and relaxed setting, is mostly an exam-driven consequence. The theme of “Organization of Sessions” highlighted subthemes of “Initial Planning” or “Spontaneous Arrangement”. The ”Tutor Roles” were based on the “Amicable Relationships” among peers, and “Knowledge-based Teaching” was preferred. Tutees showed significant satisfaction and trustworthiness with the content shared and instructional strategies used, with preferred informal language. Conclusion: This article gives an overview of the key concepts regarding the coexistence of peers as tutors and peers as tutees within the informal academic environment. The lack of scholarly literature on how these sessions are organized and conducted was identified as a research problem. The perceptions of learners actively involved in planning these sessions were investigated qualitatively. This exploratory investigation will benefit peer tutors and tutees and enhance the institution's educational environment.