Contact: Allison Matthews

STARKVILLE, Miss.—Mississippi State’s Supplemental Instruction program is among only 37 such programs nationally and the first in the state to be certified by the International Center for Supplemental Instruction.

A free academic program directed by the Center for Student Success and The Learning Center at MSU, Supplemental Instruction is designed to help students succeed in historically difficult courses.

Commonly known as SI, the nontraditional model involves a student who has recently and successfully completed a course and agrees to facilitate study sessions outside of class time in a comfortable setting. The voluntary sessions are open to all students and are anonymous, so faculty members are not aware of which pupils are participating. The program is a non-remedial approach in which students work collaboratively to improve retention, discuss complex topics and prepare for tests.

Laura Dunn, interim director of the Center for Student Success, said 95 percent of students who attend even half of the SI sessions during a semester receive between an A and C in courses that historically have high amounts of lower grades.  

“SI has given so many of our freshmen the extra boost they need in ensuring their success during the semester. This program has shown significant growth since its creation and the results speak for themselves,” Dunn said.

At MSU, SI leaders are student employees who have earned an A in a previous semester, preferably under the same instructor, and want to help others excel.

According to the Missouri center, data consistently supports the effectiveness of the SI model and shows that students who regularly attend SI sessions earn a half to a full letter grade higher than students who do not attend. SI participants also receive fewer D’s and F’s and withdraw from courses less frequently.

MSU courses offering SI include biology, calculus, chemistry, general psychology, modern U.S. history, among others. The complete schedule is updated each semester and may be found online at www.si.msstate.edu/schedule.

“SI provides students a comfortable environment to get together after class and collaborate with a peer who has wisdom in learning the material. This certification shows that our SI program has aligned with a national model proven to help students learn,” said Chelsey Vincent, MSU instructor and coordinator in The Learning Center.

“Our SI leaders work diligently to host helpful study sessions for students by meeting with their professors regularly and learning new techniques to use in their sessions,” she said.

Based at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, the International Center for Supplemental Instruction administers a certification process that is renewable every three years. Certification distinguishes programs that adhere to core principles, including training for the program coordinator, intensive training and observation for SI student leaders, as well as planning sessions, attendance requirements and documentation of student performance data.

For more on the Supplemental Instruction, visit www.si.msstate.edu.

MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.