Classwide Peer Tutoring

Wanted: An effective instructional method for heterogeneous groups of students who function at highly varied skill levels. Method must be cost-effective and user-friendly and must keep my students actively involved. Are these requirements too much to expect from any one instructional method? Although no one method can address all instructional needs, strong research support exists for classwide peer tutoring (see boxes, “What Does the Literature Say?” and “PALS Reading Results”). This article provides help for any teacher interested in improving student learning—for all students, both with and without disabilities. What are the steps for classroom use of classwide peer tutoring? Guidelines for Implementing Classwide Peer Tutoring Figure 1 lists 9 general guidelines for beginning to implement classwide peer tutoring. These guidelines will help you prepare students with minimal experience to work in collaborative dyads effectively. Once students are familiar with the procedures, select the optimal content to be covered. It makes sense to start with simple drill and practice of letter sounds, spelling words, vocabulary words and definitions, or math facts before progressing to higher-order areas. We recommend attempting a transition to more challenging content only after students have become proficient with tutoring procedures. This provides time to “work the bugs out”— particularly related to logistics (e.g., smoothly transitioning to pairs) or social-skill issues that may emerge. Figure 2 shows a sample script you could use for peer tutoring in spelling. Preparing and Selecting Classroom Materials You can use classwide peer tutoring with either standardized, commercially prepared materials or teacher-made materials. Selecting materials of the proper difficulty level is key. If materials are self-correcting (e.g., flash cards with the answers available) students may be paired, regardless of skill levels. In physical education, students can compare their partner’s stance or body position with a written standard that shows observable steps for the correct positions. For reading, effective guided-prac