Peer-Assisted Learning in Academic Libraries. Erin Rinto, John Watts, and Rosan Mitola, eds. Santa Barbara, Calif.: Libraries Unlimited, an Imprint of ABC-CLIO, LLC, 2017. 220p. Paper, $65.00 (ISBN 978-1440846885).

Abstract

Peer-Assisted Learning in Academic Libraries attempts to survey the variety of forms that peer-assisted learning can take within academic libraries. Librarians involved in reference, instruction, and outreach within academic libraries and who are looking to make an impact on undergraduate student learning will be interested in this text. Specifically, this title is recommended for those librarians who are interested in building or improving peer-to-peer learning in their libraries. The authors have broken the examples and institutions’ programs into three separate categories: information literacy instruction, cocurricular outreach, and reference services, even though many peer programs in the text do not fit neatly into these categories. The value in this book is the breadth of examples; simply by scanning the pages, readers can generate ideas for their own peer programs, similar to reading a literature review on this topic. Some chapters include materials for recruitment and training within the programs; while this is not a large part of the book, it can help guide librarians in developing their own programs.