In recent years, active and collaborative learning approaches have been increasingly implemented at the university level. Among these, peer tutoring stands out as a pioneering and widely adopted methodology. Peer tutoring involves some students acting as “teachers” while others take on the role of “pupils.” The “teachers” explain part of the subject to the “pupils” and address their questions, with the entire process supervised and guided by the professor to prevent the introduction of misconceptions. This approach encourages students to actively participate in the teaching-learning process, fostering teamwork, cooperation, solidarity, empathy, communication, and didactic skills, while enhancing knowledge acquisition. It offers an alternative to the traditional individualistic, passive, and competitive teaching methods.

This work describes the implementation of peer tutoring in the Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry II, an experimental subject taught in the second semester of the second year of the Chemistry degree. The course involves several practical sessions focused on the determination of inorganic compounds using classical and instrumental techniques. Students work in pairs across eight sessions, each pair performing a different experiment. In each session, half the students act as “tutors,” while the other half are “pupils.” Roles are swapped during the same session, ensuring every student experiences both perspectives. The “tutors” explain an experiment they have already completed, covering theoretical background, the correct handling of reagents and equipment, key operational steps (highlighting those prone to errors), safety and waste management protocols, expected and unexpected observations, potential issues and solutions, as well as data collection, analysis, and interpretation. They also address the “pupils’” questions. Professors oversee the process, intervening to clarify doubts and correct any inaccuracies.

At the end of the course, participants provided feedback on the experience. Most students reported that peer tutoring increased their engagement and helped them better understand and execute the practical experiments. They particularly valued the opportunity to act as “teachers,” improving their communication skills and feeling more comfortable asking questions to their peers than to the professor. Overall, they felt more involved in the teaching-learning process. The main drawback noted was the longer duration of the practical sessions. Nevertheless, the students expressed a highly positive view of this innovative strategy. Professors also observed significant benefits from this approach.

Keywords: Chemistry, Collaborative Learning, Peer Tutoring, Teaching-Learning, Higher Education.