Dimensions of student-to-student knowledge sharing in universities

As quintessential knowledge organisations, universities need to constantly foster knowledge sharing between their students to enable their academic success and employability. This paper draws on a range of relevant literature to proposes the categorisation of the diverse knowledge-sharing activities undertaken by students in university environments along three dimensions: relatedness to curriculum, distance between students and degree of formality. Broader factors that feed into these dimensions such as the advent of online learning, the widespread integration of social media into learning, the effects of national culture and individual student characteristics on knowledge sharing and the move towards the formalisation of peer learning among students are explored in relation to each of these dimensions. Through the use of several practical examples, the paper demonstrates how these dimensions can act as a planning tool that can help university staff develop, revise and compare student-to-student knowledge-sharing activities.