Peer Training

What is Peer Training?

At The VRRI, we use peer training as a way to transfer information or knowledge. This often entails transferring information to persons with developmental disabilities from their peers with developmental disabilities.

Peer trainers are chosen based on the subject of their knowledge, previous training, and/or experience that they’ve had. All trainers are offered further presentation training based on their past experience and skills.

Advantages of Peer Training

Generally, people learn best from their peers. This is because peers share similar life perspectives, experiences, and ways of understanding and using language. This is why peer training in plain language is important.

What is the Peer Training Facilitation Process?

The peer training facilitation process follows a series of simple steps. Facilitators:

• Research the presentation topic.
• Train the peer trainers on the topic.
• Determine the level of support and guidance the peer trainers need in order to present their information (e.g., cues to present information and training in presentation skills).
• Create required supports to make the presentation run smoothly (e.g., visual cues like pictures or words).
• Practice how workshops are presented with the peer-trainer.
• Support and coach peer trainers during the presentation.
• Evaluate the performance of the facilitator and peer-trainers after each session.
• Use evaluation feedback to adapt future sessions.

Peer Training Workshops

The research department offers two workshops led by peer trainers at this time:

• SmokeTalk. This is an education program and tool to educate persons with low literacy about the dangers of smoking.
• They pick on me. A workshop on harassment and bullying in the workplace as experienced by employees with developmental disabilities. This helps people recognize and deal with these situations.

Peer Training and Collaboration

If you or your organization has ideas for topics that would benefit from a peer-trainer led workshop, please This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . We encourage new ideas and are always open for collaboration in this unique form of information sharing.