Cognitive scientists continue to learn more about how we remember information. Many college students, however, do not use the methods and habits that are most successful for learning. Part of the reason for this may be a lack of awareness regarding effective behaviors. However, Weinstein et al. (2019) also suggest that student discomfort in the face of unfamiliar habits may play a role. Particularly in the case of strategies such as retrieval practice, which may feel ineffective to students who are new to using it, or re-reading, which counter-intuitively feels effective although it is not, students may resist changing old habits.

The demands of college curricula often leave little opportunity for such skills to be explicitly taught in the classroom. Tutors, on the other hand, have a unique opportunity to help students learn new study skills. Students often ask tutors for suggestions on how to change their study practices, and tutors are frequently able to dedicate time to one-on-one work with students. Peer tutors, furthermore, have a unique opportunity to influence student behaviors through modelling positive habits in their own studies.