Research on the LA Model
Impact of the LA Model
Over 100 research articles have been published on multiple facets of the LA Model (Barrasso & Spillios, 2021). The growing research consistently demonstrates positive impacts of the LA model on student learning, retention, belonging, and on faculty member satisfaction and growth. The LA Alliance (LAA) was established to support successful implementation of the LA model. In Spring 2025, there were 3,708 LAA members from 606 institutions, spanning large research universities to two-year colleges, in 32 different countries.
Impact on Student Performance
Alzen, Langdon, and Otero (2018) analyzed institutional data from over 20,000 students across five years, controlling for instructor effects by comparing the same instructors teaching courses with and without LAs. They found that students who participated in at least one LA-supported course were 60% less likely to fail subsequent calculus, chemistry, or physics courses.
Outcomes for LAs
- LAs gain increased content knowledge and stronger STEM identities (Close, Conn, & Close, 2016; Nadelson & Fannigan, 2014).
- LAs are nearly 10 times more likely to graduate within six years than matched peers (Otero, 2015).
- About 12% of LAs pursue K-12 teaching careers. Those who become secondary teachers are more likely to use learner-centered teaching practices than their peers (Gray, Webb, & Otero, 2016).
Focus on Underrepresented Groups
Through a 2016 NSF grant, the Learning About STEM Student Outcomes (LASSO) tool was developed to pool national data from LA-supported and non-LA-supported courses. Using LASSO data, studies have shown that the LA model significantly benefits BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) students and women in science. For example:
- Van Dusen and Nissen (2020) and Sellami et al. (2017) demonstrated that LA-supported courses had greater positive impacts on underrepresented students in introductory physics courses.
- These benefits are attributed to LAs fostering academic and social integration and a sense of belonging (Clements et al., 2022; Top, 2019).
Broader Contributions
Research has also highlighted the contributions of LAs in areas such as:
- Supporting active learning course development (LaBrake, 2019; Jardine & Friedman, 2017)
- Faculty development (McHenry et al., 2009)
- Institutional change (Goertzen et al., 2011)
- Two- and four-year college collaborations (Sabella & Van Duzor, 2013)
- Supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion (Van Dusen, White, & Roualdes, 2016)
- Enhancing student success in two-year colleges (Schick, 2018)
- Strengthening LA-instructor partnerships (Hite et al., 2021)
The growth and success of the LA Model has been supported by the development of the LA Campus software, which collects longitudinal data and supports collaboration through the LA Alliance. Currently, 17 universities have annual subscriptions to this software, facilitating ongoing research and innovation in LA-supported education.
References
- Alzen, J. L., Langdon, L. S., & Otero, V. K. (2018). A logistic regression investigation of the relationship between the Learning Assistant model and failure rates in introductory STEM courses. International journal of STEM education, 5(1), 1-12.
- Barrasso, A. P., & Spilios, K. E. (2021). A scoping review of literature assessing the impact of the learning assistant model. International Journal of STEM Education, 8, 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-020-00267-8
- Clements, T. P., Friedman, K. L., Johnson, H. J., Meier, C. J., Watkins, J., Brockman, A. J., & Brame, C. J. (2022). "It made me feel like a bigger part of the STEM community": Incorporation of Learning Assistants Enhances Students' Sense of Belonging in a Large Introductory Biology Course. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 21(2), ar26. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.21-09-0287
- Close, E. W., Conn, J., & Close, H. G. (2016). Becoming physics people: Development of integrated physics identity through the Learning Assistant experience. Physical Review Physics Education Research, 12(1), 010109.
- Goertzen, R. M., Brewe, E., Kramer, L. H., Wells, L., & Jones, D. (2011). Moving toward change: Institutionalizing reform through implementation of the Learning Assistant model and Open Source Tutorials. Physical Review Special Topics-Physics Education Research, 7(2), 020105.
- Gray, K. E., Webb, D. C., & Otero, V. K. (2016). Effects of the learning assistant model on teacher practice. Physical Review Physics Education Research, 12(2), 020126.
- Hite, R., Johnson, L., Velasco, R. C. L., Williams, G. B., & Griffith, K. (2021). Supporting undergraduate STEMM education: perspectives from faculty mentors and learning assistants in calculus II. Education Sciences, 11(3), 143. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11030143
- Jardine, H. E., & Friedman, L. A. (2017). Using undergraduate facilitators for active learning in organic chemistry: A preparation course and outcomes of the experience. Journal of Chemical Education, 94(6), 703-709.
- LaBrake, C. (2019). Active Learning in the Large Lecture Hall Format. In Active Learning in General Chemistry: Whole-Class Solutions (pp. 87-112). American Chemical Society.
- McHenry, N., Martin, A., Castaldo, A., & Ziegenfuss, D. (2010). Learning Assistants Program: Faculty Development for Conceptual Change. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 22(3), 258-268.
- Nadelson, L. S., & Fannigan, J. (2014). Path Less Traveled: Fostering STEM Majors' Professional Identity Development through Engagement as STEM Learning Assistants. Journal of Higher Education Theory & Practice, 14(5).
- Otero, V. K. (2015). Nationally scaled model for leveraging course transformation with physics teacher preparation. Recruiting, and Educating Future Physics Teachers: Case Studies, and Effective Practices, 107-127.
- Sabella, M. S., & Van Duzor, A. G. (2013, January). Cultural toolkits in the urban physics learning community. In AIP Conference Proceedings (Vol. 1513, No. 1, pp. 34-37). AIP.
- Schick, C. P. (2018). Trying on teaching: Transforming stem classrooms with a learning assistant program. In Strategies Promoting Success of Two-Year College Students (pp. 3-27). American Chemical Society.
- Sellami, N., Shaked, S., Laski, F. A., Eagan, K. M., & Sanders, E. R. (2017). Implementation of a learning assistant program improves student performance on higher-order assessments. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 16(4), ar62. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.16-12-0341
- Top, L. (2019). From Invitation to Integration: A Model for why Learning Assistants are valued by members of communities within institutions, Unpublished Dissertation, September, 2019.
- Van Dusen, B., & Nissen, J. (2020). Equity in college physics student learning: A critical quantitative intersectionality investigation. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 57(1), 33-57.
- Van Dusen, B., White, J., & Roualdes, E. (2016, July 20-21). The Impact of Learning Assistants on Inequities in Physics Student Outcomes. Paper presented at Physics Education Research Conference 2016, Sacramento, CA.