Using Peer Response Groups with Limited English Proficient Writers

The use of peer response groups in writing classrooms has become increasingly popular in recent years as emphasis has shifted from product to process. For the limited English proficient (LEP) student, however, interaction with peers or teacher has been more restricted. The present study investigated the effectiveness of the use of heterogeneous (in terms of language proficiency and ability) peer response groups with forty-six LEP students in grade four language arts classes. The results indicated significant differences on two measures of fluency for the subjects assigned to peer response groups; however, there was no difference in overall quality of compositions produced.

[1]  Robert J. Stevens,et al.  Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition: Two Field Experiments. , 1987 .

[2]  Lucy Calkins,et al.  The art of teaching writing , 1985 .

[3]  Arnulfo G. Ramírez.  Language in Bilingual Classrooms , 1980 .

[4]  Maxine Hairston,et al.  The Winds of Change: Thomas Kuhn and the Revolution in the Teaching of Writing. , 1982 .

[5]  Peter Elbow,et al.  Writing Without Teachers , 1973 .

[6]  Colette Daiute.  Do 1 and 1 Make 2? , 1986 .

[7]  L. M. Laosa,et al.  Maternal Teaching Strategies and Cognitive Styles in Chicano Families. , 1980 .

[8]  N. Webb.  Peer interaction and learning in small groups , 1989 .

[9]  Meredith D. Gall,et al.  Educational Research: An Introduction , 1965 .

[10]  Anne Ruggles Gere,et al.  Talking About Writing: The Language of Writing Groups. , 1985 .

[11]  Donald Morison Murray,et al.  A writer teaches writing : a practical method of teaching composition , 1968 .

[12]  Carole Edelsky,et al.  Writing in a Bilingual Program: Habia Una Vez , 1986 .

[13]  Donald H. Graves.  Writing Teachers and Children At Work , 1983 .

[14]  T. P. Carter,et al.  Effective Bilingual Schools: Implications for Policy and Practice , 1986, American Journal of Education.

[15]  George Hillocks,et al.  What Works in Teaching Composition: A Meta-Analysis of Experimental Treatment Studies , 1984, American Journal of Education.

[16]  Gary A. Cziko,et al.  The Evaluation of Bilingual Education , 1992 .

[17]  Arthur N. Applebee.  Writing: Trends Across the Decade, 1974-84. , 1986 .

[18]  Andrea B. Bermudez,et al.  Using Brainstorming and Clustering with LEP Writing to Develop Elaboration Skills , 1990 .