So, in thinking about implications for instruction, I searched for other articles on peer teaching and found one that was published in Reading Improvement in 2010. Marr and her colleagues conducted a study using peer coaching to improve reading fluency and literacy skills among a group of second grade students. They paired struggling students with more fluent readers and had them work together to read teacher-selected passages. At the end of the peer coaching activity, the teacher would have the struggling readers read their passages for one minute. The coaches would mark how far their partner read in the passage. Then the reader could locate the number of words read and record their fluency data. I love this idea!
This approach was selected because, "peer-mediated learning groups in which children work together to support each other represent "... powerful academic interventions that can prevent and/or remediate reading failure before it leads to even more devastating outcomes..."
In my classroom I frequently require students to read their written work to a friend. I use this technique as a formative assessment in the classroom. I am now aware that this activity may also enhance self-efficacy. I hope to try to use more peer coaching in my classroom, especially when it comes to helping my struggling readers. If I can tap into the ready-made resource of my existing students, then I won't always feel like I have to provide all the intervention. Peer coaching has the potential to be a win-win situation -- good for me and beneficial for my students.
Sources
Marr, M., Algozzine, B., Kavel, R., & Dugan, K. (2010). Implementing Peer
Coaching Fluency Building to Improve Early Literacy Skills. Reading Improvement,
47(2), 74-91. Retrieved from Education Full Text database
Schunk, D., Zimmerman, B. (2007). Influencing Children's Self-Efficacy and Self-
Regulation of Reading and Writing Through Modeling. Reading and Writing
Quarterly, 23, 7-25.
Hi Eve,
ReplyDeleteGreat article! I love the idea of peer coaching. I used peer editing very successfully last year and this year I think I'll try the peer coaching. I agree with you that it is important that we (the teachers) are not the only intervention. It's amazing to learn all the different ways our students are teaching and helping each other.
Hi Eve,
ReplyDeleteI think class wide peer tutoring is a great idea. I found an article by Bowman-Perrott that you might find interesting. They conducted a study on how peer tutoring benefits all students even those with emotional and behavioral disorders.
The author conducted a study with 11 students identified with EBD. Five of the students were in classroom 1 and six of the students were in classroom 2. Students in both classes were 9th through 12th graders taking biology taught by the same teacher. Class wide peer tutoring was implemented three times a week for 30 minutes. Within that time frame, students had a chance to be the tutor and the tutee to go over vocabulary, comprehension and study guides. Tutors read vocabulary or study guide questions to their tutees and were awarded 2 points for each correct answer. If it was answered incorrectly the student had to say and write the correct answer three times and then they were given a point for the corrected answer. Bonus points were awarded for students who were on task and working well with their partners. Although students kept a record of their individual points they were not displayed. Instead, team points served as a group contingency and student were able to earn tickets that could be traded in for different prizes.
Pretests and posttests were given to measure how much the students learned the material and if they were able to use the new vocabulary into context. The tests included four sections: vocabulary matching, multiple choice, short answer and bonus questions. The results showed a significant increase in knowledge and produced positive results. Students who typically had difficulty with positive social interactions were working cooperatively and were actively engaged with the academic content. Low ability students were encouraged because they learned the material and high ability students challenged themselves to exceed their score from the previous week.
I found the results of the study very interesting and applicable to use in my own classroom. Using class wide peer tutoring would not only benefit students in helping them retain the information being presented but it also provides active engagement and frequent opportunities for students to respond. Incorporating class wide peer tutoring allows students to review and learn content material while being both the teacher and the student.
Bowman-Perrott L., (2009). Class Wide Peer Tutoring: An Effective Strategy for Students With Emotional and Behavioral Disorders. Intervention in School & Clinic, Vol. 44(5), pp. 259-267
Hi Eve –
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea to have your students read their writings to one another. My fifth-grade daughter recently attended a summer session with the Northern Virginia Young Writer’s Project, and one of the instructors there said that a huge motivator for young writers is simply knowing that they have an audience…
On another note, I am definitely going to take a closer look at the Marr article you mentioned. In an ideal situation, I can see where a struggling reader could benefit from peer interaction - the competitive aspect of it, being encouraged by others, trying to imitate others, etc. However, Marr’s conclusions raise a number of questions for me. Based on my limited knowledge and the observations I have made at my 6-year-old son’s reading club and as a parent volunteer, I have witnessed the behavior of the “reading bully”. You can probably envision the profile. What does a teacher do with a child who belittles others who are not as advanced in their reading? Isn't there usually one or two of these types of kids in most elementary school classrooms? I am actually tutoring a little boy whose mother shared that her little first-grader (a struggling reader) has been harmed by a “reading bully”. Perhaps Marr is assuming a given group has a supportive dynamic, but how often does one see such an ideal situation? My guess is that teachers must be especially careful about grouping students. Regarding the Schunk and Zimmerman quote – “Although adult models can teach children skills, children derive the best self-efficacy information from models who are similar to themselves,” - I would like to see more evidence for this. My guess is that children derive the best self-efficacy information from adult models – loving parents and caring teachers - who provide sincere encouragement and praise. I think there may be a tendency out there to exaggerate the benefits of peer-to-peer instruction and interaction; we have to make peace with the fact that many teachers and children spend their days in overcrowded classrooms – that peers are teaching peers whether it’s working or not. I guess the key is to group children carefully and employ systems that work. Thanks again for writing the interesting blog post!