Reading instruction is an important and essential component of daily instruction at the elementary level. A great deal of my work as staff developer revolves around developing teachers’ ability to provide reading instruction that addresses the needs of all their students. Many hours of staff development have gone into guided reading instruction, balanced literacy, learning centers, flexible grouping and reading assessment just to name a few. It is not surprising that new and veteran teachers alike find themselves overwhelmed with current trends and techniques suggested to improve and enhance their reading instruction. Although there is a lot of training available to teachers, many are still unsure as to how to enhance their reading instructional program in order to provide for those students who are experiencing difficulty in reading. As a result, teachers are often looking for ways in which to support and enhance their reading strategies especially when it comes to students with reading difficulties.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the effectiveness of using peer tutoring as a teaching strategy to improve the reading skills students who are currently at-risk in reading. The reason for my concern with this population is that about 80% of the students in my school are reading one or more years below their grade level. In addition, I wanted to examine how I could develop a structured peer tutoring program in my school, which could address some of our social as well as academic concerns because many of these very children are also behavior problems.

Peer tutoring is described as "the instruction of one or more students by another student" and it was "…developed in some public elementary and secondary schools in the 1970’s as a pedagogy for handling large classes" (Encyclopedia of American Education, p. 719). However, the groundwork for peer tutoring started as far back as the eighteenth century and many educators describe peer tutoring as more than just having one student instruct another student. Wagner, for example, defines peer tutoring as "…the concept of students teaching other students in formal and/or informal school learning situations that are delegated, planned, and directed by the teacher " (Wagner, p. 5). Some educators go further to say that peer tutoring involves the careful matching of tutors and tutees, in a structured program with specific procedures, requiring careful organization, monitoring and supervision by the classroom teacher (Topping, 1988, p. 1). For this paper, we will use the latter definition since it best describes the research studies found on peer tutoring.

Peer tutoring is considered by many educators to be an effective and powerful instructional strategy that can be used to develop academic as well as social skills in both the tutor and the tutee. Topping feels that peer tutoring "has enormous potential in the classroom, given careful organization and monitoring by a skilled teacher" (Topping, 1989, p. 489). In addition, studies have shown that peer tutoring has resulted in significant academic gains for both tutors and tutees (Arreaga-Mayer, 1998; Mathes, et al., 1999; Labbo & Teale, 1990; Kreuger & Braun, 1999; Topping, 1989). One reason for that is that peer tutoring provides one-on-one attention, immediate feedback, and active learning in a non-threatening environment. Furthermore, peer tutoring is considered to be a powerful tool for the development of social skills. Studies have shown that peer tutoring can improve the overall behavior, attitude, self-esteem, communication and interpersonal skills of remedial and/or disruptive students by promoting cooperation, friendliness, and positive social behavior such as giving praise and encouragement (Olmscheid, pp. 3-5). The tutors "develop a sense of pride and accomplishment, and learn trust and responsibility" (Topping, 1988, p. 3) and the most striking effect on the tutors is the increased confidence and feeling of adequacy. Finally, research has documented peer tutoring to be an effective instructional tool for improving the language skills of limited English proficient students because of the increased English language use and academic engagement as compared to traditional teacher-directed language instruction (Arrega-Mayer, p. 94). Another benefit of peer tutoring is that it allows teachers to focus their instruction on the teaching of new materials while peer tutoring serves to reinforce the material already taught as well as meeting the individual needs of students by providing one-on-one instruction (Olmscheid, p. 6).

Given the overwhelming research that unequivocally demonstrates that peer tutoring is an effective and powerful instructional strategy with so many academic and social advantages, then why is peer tutoring not widely implemented in classrooms? Perhaps we need to look at the historical development of peer tutoring for an answer to that question.

It was Andrew Bell, born in England in 1753, who developed the first systematic use of peer tutoring in 1789 (Topping, 1988, p. 13). Bell developed a system in which each class was paired into tutors and tutees and was assigned an assistant teacher who supervised the tutors. Bell found that "the effect of this system in raising pupil attainment appeared to be substantial" (Topping, 1988, p. 14). In 1801, Joseph Lancaster had the idea that "…boys who know a little could teach those who know less" (Wagner, p. 62). Lancaster developed in England a program in which monitors and assistant monitors were used in each class to ensure that pupils helped other pupils. By 1805, Lancaster had not only developed a new kind of teacher, but a new way of teaching along with a new way of school management (Wagner, p. 62).

By the time Lancaster came to American in 1818, there were more than 150 schools using the system he developed (Wagner, p. 178). However, by the end of the century Lancaster’s system of instruction "received little notice or was soundly condemned in most cases" (Wagner, p. 189). From the latter part of the nineteenth century until the 1960s there is almost no mention of peer tutoring in educational literature (Wagner, p. 215). In the 1960’s "…there was to be a great resurgence of interest in peer tutoring as attention in the United States focused on problems of underachievement in public schools" (Topping, 1988, p. 16). "Since that time, literature on the theory, research, and practice of peer teaching has proliferated" (Wagner, p. 218). As a result of the growing effort to provide individualization of instruction, educators developed programs based on the ideas of Andrew Bell and Joseph Lancaster. This renewed interest in peer tutoring lead to the development of "…hundreds of locally-based programmes revolving around some form of peer tutoring" (Topping, 1988. p.16) as well as a series of articles and publications documenting the positive effects of peer tutoring.

Many peer tutoring programs targeted the ethnic minority low-income population. One such program was the "Youth Tutoring Youth" started in 1967 in Newark, New Jersey and Philadelphia. In this program, 14-and 15-year-old children who were under-achieving, particularly in reading, acted as tutors for elementary school children (Topping, 1988, p. 19). This program had impressive results with increases in reading for both the tutor and the tutees. As a result of its success, by "…1969 this program was operating in more than 60 cities and by 1970 it had spread to 405 centeres of population" (Topping, 1988, p. 19). Although many of these programs provided after-school tutoring, there was an interest in incorporating "…peer tutoring within the organizational fabric of the life of an elementary school" (Topping, 1988, p. 20). In the United States, peer tutoring never went beyond the programs funded by universities and government agencies and, therefore, peer tutoring never quite become a part of the daily fabric of elementary education in America. At the same time that interest in peer tutoring waned once again in the United States, it was becoming increasingly popular abroad. In the United Kingdom two programs, ‘Paired Reading’ and ‘Pause, Prompt and Praise’ were considered ideal vehicles for peer tutoring (Topping, 1988, p. 18). So while peer tutoring became less and less popular in the United States, peer tutoring programs were being developed abroad and their effectiveness was examined and documented. The peer tutoring programs being developed in the United Kingdom and New Zealand had several components that were considered essential if peer tutoring was to be successful and effective.

First of all, a successful peer tutoring must have clear objectives and goals. Teachers need to think of what they wish their students to be doing differently by the end of the project. These objectives need to be realistic. Second, peer tutoring should preferably be done in a one-to-one setting, but it can also occur in small groups of three to five children. Third, teachers need to take great care in the selection and matching of tutors and tutees with regard to ability level. "A widely used rule of thumb is to keep a differential of about two years in attainment between tutors and tutees" (Topping, 1988, p. 32). In addition to considering ability levels when matching students, teachers need to consider pre-exiting social relationships. Peer tutors can be of the same age or of different ages. The latter is often referred to as cross age tutoring. The fourth consideration is the curriculum area. Reading is usually the area most widely used for peer tutoring programs and within reading; oral reading is the most emphasized (Topping, 1988, p. 35). Peer tutoring has also been used in mathematics, language, spelling and writing. The next important consideration is the duration and time of the program. Peer tutoring sessions should be at least 15 minutes and the most common tutoring session is 30 minutes long. Furthermore, in order to "ensure that a project has a significant impact, the frequency of tutorial contact needs to be at least three times per week" (Topping, 1988, p. 42). It is also suggested that the minimum project period be at least six weeks in order to gain any significant impact from the tutoring sessions (Topping, 1988, p. 43). Peer tutoring programs also require the training of tutors on how to present the skills to be developed, the materials to be used as well as how to praise and correct the tutees. This training cannot be overstressed since "training tutors carefully also increases the effectiveness of the procedure for both," tutors and tutees (Topping, 1989, p. 490). Finally, peer tutoring programs need to be monitored, evaluated, and a method of record keeping needs to be established. There are variations among peer tutoring programs, but most of them contain at least these essential components.

The first study to be discussed is of particular interest because the population in this study is shares many similarities to students in my school. In this study, the goal of researchers, Krueger and Braun, was to implement a peer tutoring that would boost the reading achievement of second-language learners. The majority of the children in this study do not speak English as their first language. In addition, school is their only exposure to English because the language and culture of home is different from that of the school community. "This means that they must meet the challenge of learning a new language and learning to read simultaneously in the absence of any external support " (Kreuger and Braun, p. 1).

The researchers in this study felt that "the success and effectiveness of peer tutoring to teach reading skills are well documented in the literature" (Krueger and Braun, p. 3). In addition, the one-to-one contact of a peer would provide the second-language learner with the opportunity to speak, write, read, and listen to English. The main goal of this peer tutoring program was to increase and improve reading fluency and comprehension among second-language learners. This peer tutoring program is a daily, thirty minute reading program in which a second grade student is paired with a third grade tutor. The pair remains together for a period of ten weeks. "The children in both classes were trained in the expected peer tutoring behaviors through mini workshops. Each pair had a folder containing evaluation forms; blank paper, a game checklist and the team followed a carefully structured routine. This daily routine changed every ten weeks and continued until the end of the academic year. In June reading achievement of the students was post tested. In addition, a teacher observation checklist was used to evaluate how well the children were using the targeted behaviors and daily evaluation forms were used to assess the enjoyment of the children in the program. The results of the post test demonstrated that "the gains made by the children were impressive" (Krueger and Braun, p. 4). "The Grade 2 students, on average, showed a gain of 1.5 years in reading fluency and comprehension." Furthermore, the tutors showed a reading level increase from 14% to 61% over the course of the peer tutoring program. The program also encouraged the positive development of social skills as students practiced negotiating, encouraging and praising their reading buddies. The researchers in this program concluded that daily peer tutoring is an effective way to help second-language learners develop "…reading fluency and comprehension, while simultaneously raising self-esteem" (Kreuger and Braun, p. 4). The teachers felt that their program provided each child with "…the undivided attention of a peer tutor every day as he or she read, spelled, questioned, and answered and then received affirmation and encouragement for his or her effort and skills" (Kreuger and Braun, p. 5).

Another similar study to the one conducted by Kreuger and Braun used storybook reading to improve the reading skills of the older readers doing the reading. In 1990 Labbo and Teale conducted a small-scale study using low-achieving fifth-grade readers in which fifth grade students read storybooks to kindergarten children. This study is an example of cross age tutoring, as the tutors and the tutees are different ages. The goal of this research was to see the effects of the intervention on the fifth graders and develop the details for a large-scale study. The researchers chose storybook reading because story reading has "great potential for getting at risk children off to a good start in reading" (Labbo & Teale, p. 363). The researchers felt that since storybook reading has been documented as a successful technique for improving the reading skills of adults, then this technique "…could similarly help the fifth graders to improve their own reading" (Labbo & Teale, p. 363).

Another reason why the researcher designed this study using storybook reading is because the primary problem with many poor readers in the upper grades is that they are weak in fluency. Consequently, their reading rate is generally slow and their word recognition is poor (Labbo & Teale, p. 363). By having the older students read to younger students, the older students would need to practice their story beforehand. The researchers "felt that building the technique of repeated oral readings into a lesson cycle that focused on comprehension-based oral reading and included storybook time could prove to be particularly effective way of helping older poor readers" (Labbo & Teale, p. 363). The researchers felt "…that the process would give the fifth graders a genuine purpose for engaging in repeated readings because they would perform their oral readings for a real audience, and it would help them build additional strategies for effective reading" (Labbo & Teale, p. 363).

There were twenty fifth-grade students in this study who were all identified as below-average readers based on their reading scores on a standardized test. Since the implications of such a program could not be measured solely by a quantitative test, the teachers recorded their observations on the students’ use of reading strategies and social interactions during the reading sessions. Thus, "by monitoring the quality of the interactions and keeping observational notes of the shared readings, a record of the progress for each student was maintained" (Labbo & Teale, p. 364). This program was implemented for eight weeks in which each pair met four times a week for 15 to 20 minutes. As in the previous study, each session was carefully structured and designed to consist of four phases each with a specific purpose: "…preparation, pre-reading collaboration, reading to the kindergartners, and postreading collaboration" (Labbo & Teale, p. 365). In each of the four phases, the fifth grade students were provided with a great deal of guidance and support when needed as well as the opportunity to make their own decisions. For example, in the preparation phase, the teacher helped each fifth grade tutor select an appropriate book to read. In addition, the teacher would also"…help the student decide how each book would be introduced and where they might stop to discuss a book with the kindergarten students" (Labbo & Teale, p. 365). In the reading to the kindergartners phase, the fifth grader could choose to read the same storybook over a four-day period to different children or read a different book on each visit. The postreading collaboration phase was a crucial phase in the entire cycle because it was here that the fifth graders reflected on the quality of the reading interactions. More importantly, it was in this phase that the teacher would help tutors develop strategies that they would use to improve their future readings by verbalizing the mental processes involved in reading. Another strong point in this study was that instead of trying to develop a lot of different strategies, the program developed one strategy that was considered to have special applications to the readings: "relating personal experience to storybook situations, a strategy shown to be valuable for encouraging deep and active processing of text" (Labbo & Teale, p. 366). The quantitative results and the rich qualitative data of this study suggest that a peer tutoring reading program "…is a promising way of helping poor readers in the upper elementary grades to improve their reading" (Labbo & Teale, p. 368). In addition, there are definitely social benefits when "…the fifth graders assumed the role of expert readers who communicated the meaning of the story through oral interpretation and expressive reading" (Labbo & Teale, p. 366). Although the results indicated that this peer tutoring program was successful in improving reading skills, the researchers felt that this technique needs further study with a larger population and a control group. Because of the many positive benefits mentioned in this program, I would certainly like to implement it in my school with our fifth grade students.

In 1999 Chemidlin conducted a study similar to the one by Labbo & Teale in order to further examine the effects of cross age peer tutoring on the reading achievement and attitude of students. The study paired fifth grade students with kindergarten students who met for 15-20 minutes, four times a week for a period of eight weeks. The fifth graders were trained as to the basic skill needs of kindergarten children. The fifth grade tutors were given specific procedures to follow during the tutoring sessions along with journals to record each session. The results from the posttest indicated that, "…seven out of ten of the tutors went up in their independent reading level" (Chemidlin, p. 5). In addition, teachers noted that the children who were mentors now assumed more of a leadership role in reading. Furthermore, the kindergartners demonstrated an attachment and admiration of their tutors, which builds confidence in the fifth graders as well as in the kindergartener students as a result of the support they receive from the older students (Chemidlin, p. 6). The students even wrote letters to each other without encouragement from their teachers. Hence, there is definitely a noticeable improvement in the attitude of the students in this study. The researcher felt that the evidence from this study supported the use of cross age peer tutoring to improve reading ability and attitudes. However, the researcher also felt that the study was conducted during a short period of time and that a full year tutoring program would be needed in order to provide further evidence of this effect.

As can be seen, these peer tutoring programs had many similarities. First, there was a distinct group of tutors and tutees and the tutors were older. Second, the programs utilized a structured routine whereby each lesson was divided into specific parts or phases. Thirdly, each program trained the tutors using group lessons in which the children discussed appropriate behavior and lesson strategies. Fourth, the materials used in both programs were kept to a minimum. Furthermore, the studies included observational data as part of their monitoring procedure. In addition, the peer tutoring programs had each pair meet on a daily basis for about the same number of weeks (eight to ten). Finally, the researchers felt that the data collected on their peer tutoring program helped the students improve their reading skills as well as boost their sense of confidence and self-esteem.

The next studies present a variation from those previously discussed. In the following studies, the tutors and the tutees are not two distinct groups of students, but rather all the students in a class alternate in their roles as tutors and tutees. In addition, each student is paired with a similar ability student. Hence, you do not have a more able student tutoring a less able student. This type of peer tutoring is termed classwide peer tutoring and it developed as an "…instructional method used to increase academic engagement time, involve peers, and provide continuous assessment of progress" (Butler, p. 2).

In the first study, the goal was to "explore the effects of classwide peer tutoring on the acquisition of sight words in a class consisting of fourth- and fifth-grade students with mild to moderate disabilities" (Butler, p. 2). This study was a small-scale project consisting only of 10 students ranging in age from 9 to 12 years old. The materials used were kept very simple, consisting of flashcards, a folder, and a progress chart. All the students were pre-tested and this served two functions: to determine growth at the end of the study and to determine the sight words each student needed to learn. Each student had to learn five words in each session, which is a manageable number of words. The students were trained and provided sufficient practice so that each student knew what was expected. Among other things, the tutors were taught "…how to accept praise and constructive feedback from others as well as how to give it" (Butler, p. 7). As in the other studies, the daily peer tutoring sessions had a very structured routine. The students switched their roles as tutor and tutees when a timer rang. At the end of eight weeks of tutoring sessions, "all ten students mastered new sight words. The mean acquisition was 54.3 words, with a range of 40 to 79 new words" (Butler, p. 5). The researcher concluded that the students in the study had "…made an average gain of one grade level in the eight-week period of the study" and that "this is particularly impressive since most of these students had not learned to read in their first four or five years of school" (Butler, p. 6). The researcher also felt that the study showed definite social benefits as the students "…enjoyed the tutoring routine and were proud of their accomplishments" (Butler, p. 6). Another indicator of the positive effects of peer tutoring was displayed when the students would "…form impromptu pairs for studying math facts or spelling words" (Butler, p. 6). In addition, "every student developed an increased level of self-confidence because each student, no matter how low his ability level, had the opportunity to tutor a peer at approximately the same ability level" (Butler, p. 7).

When implementing this model, it is important to note that the teacher will have considerable work to do initially. First the classroom teacher must pretest each student, select appropriate words, and create the materials needed. In addition, during the first week, each student must be checked daily for mastery. This might seem time consuming at first, but once the students are engaged in their routine, the teacher is then able to conduct student observations and in the direct teaching of individual students in the skills needed.

Even though this study was conducted on a very small sample of students, and further studies would need to be conducted to determine the effectiveness of this peer tutoring program, the study still has usefulness for those implementing a peer tutoring program. First of all, the procedure used in this study is described in a clear manner. Second, the procedure used is simple and easy to follow. Furthermore, sight word development is an area in which the classroom teacher can easily monitor the progress and the success of the program. Therefore, when implementing a peer tutoring, this is the program that I would like to begin with.

As a result of the documented success of classwide peer tutoring to promote reading skills, many versions of this program have been developed and tested. One such program included first grade students paired with other children from within their own class. The goal of this study was to improve reading skills by conducting peer tutoring sessions with the entire class during three weekly 35-minute sessions for a period of four weeks. By doing this, the researchers felt each student would be "…receiving double or triple the amount of typical reading practice" (Mathes, p. 52). The program developed is called Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies for First-Grade Readers (First-Grade PALS). The research team developed this project because they felt that reading

"…instruction must be designed to dramatically increase the

amount of time children spend actively engage in the process

of reading so that all students have sufficient opportunities

to master critical content" (Mathes, p. 52).

This program included a specific number of lesson sheets, which provided 15 minutes of systematic and explicit instruction in the development of phonological skills. The remaining time was spent on story sharing, which consisted of three activities: Pretend Read, Read Aloud and Retell (Mathes, p. 56). The peer tutoring sessions were very structured and the tutors were carefully taught the tutoring routine. During the tutor session "the teacher moves from pair to pair, monitoring and providing feedback and reinforcement" (Mathes, p. 53). At the conclusion of the study, the researcher felt that "…once First-Grade PALS was in place, students began to make noticeable improvement" (Mathes, p. 57) in their phonological awareness and in their oral reading skills. The researcher provided case studies of three students involved in this project as evidence of the improvement achieved. The researchers also felt that First-Grade PALS is only one piece of a total reading program and "…that if used in concert with other best practices and powerful curricula, the results would be even more powerful" (Mathes, p. 59). Even though this study provided detailed explanation of the procedure involved in this particular program, I felt that the procedure described was complicated and technical to successfully implement.

The second study examined the effects of a classwide peer tutoring program "…in promoting reading achievement among students at the secondary level" (Fuchs, p. 310). The purpose of the study was to examine the effectiveness of using peer tutoring within high school remedial and special education reading classes. The study consisted of an experimental and a control group in which the experimental group supplemented their reading instruction with peer-assisted learning strategies (PALS) five times every two weeks for sixteen weeks. Each tutoring session included three activities: partner reading, paragraph summarizing and prediction relay. "PALS has been shown to be an effective reading treatment among students in Grade 2 through 6 for improving reading fluency and comprehension across learning disabled, low-achieving, and average-achieving students" (Fuchs, p. 312). However, in this study, the data showed only a moderate effect on comprehension along with disappointing findings for fluency (Fuchs, p. 316). Therefore, the results raise questions about the effectiveness of using peer tutoring at the secondary level. Future studies need to consider increasing the amount of time and the frequency of the peer tutoring because having the pairs meet five times every two weeks for sixteen weeks was not sufficient time to have an impact. Another problem the researchers found with students at the secondary level was the lack of motivation and availability of age appropriate reading material.

In 1995, Houghton and Litwin conducted a study using a specific tutoring procedure for oral reading called Pause, Prompt and Praise (PPP). The purpose of the study was "…to examine the effects of peer tutoring on the performance and achievement of below average primary school readers" (Houghton & Litwin, p. 1). As in the other studies, the tutors were trained in the use of a repertoire of peer teaching skills for use with their tutees. This repertoire consisted "…of pausing after errors, prompting correct response and praising for responding" (Houghton & Litwin, p. 2). The study goes on to explain the steps taken in each phase of the Pause, Prompt and Praise. For example, the first part of PPP (Pause) "…requires the tutor to delay attention to a tutee’s reading error for 5 seconds or until the end of a sentence" (Houghton & Litwin, p. 2). If after the 5 seconds, the tutee gives no response, then the tutor is to give a prompt depending "…on the nature of the error" (Houghton & Litwin, p. 2). Here again, I feel I could not implement such a program given the vague description of the procedures in this program for how is a student to determine the ‘nature of the error.’

The participants in this study included 24 sixth grade students. The tutor and tutees were "…matched with a same-sex peer of approximately the same age" and "the student in each pair who had the higher reading age was designated the peer tutor" (Houghton & Litwin, p. 2). The pair met for 20 minutes over a period of from four to eight weeks depending on the pairs, using a commercially made reading program. As in the other studies, standardized reading tests were administered prior to and on conclusion of the research. The results of the post testing demonstrated that all students, tutors and tutees, recorded gains for both reading accuracy and reading comprehension. There were as expected some social benefits to this program. First of all, the tutors reported that the program "…gave them the opportunity to make a positive contribution which would benefit other students" (Houghton & Litwin, p. 10). The teachers were pleased with the high levels of on-task behavior, which resulted from the implementation of the program. "Teacher also noted improvements in social behavior and in attitude towards each other, citing examples of friendships and co-operation taking place both inside and outside the classroom" (Houghton & Litwin, p. 11).

As I read more and more about peer tutoring, my interest in the subject increased and I began to inquire about such a program in discussions with my colleagues. I was finally able to find someone who was instrumental in implementing a peer tutoring program at his school. The school is very similar to mine except that it does not have a large bilingual population. Armed with all of the information from my research, I asked lots of questions in order to find out about the peer tutoring program at this school. In this case, the peer tutoring programs was initiated in order include special education students into regular education classrooms. One of the programs initiated is a cross age peer tutoring program involving fourth graders and first graders in which the fourth graders tutor the first graders in developing their writing skills. The other two programs involve fourth grade classes and a fifth grade classes in which students within each class tutor another student in reading, social studies, or science. All the peer tutors meet three times a week for one hour and the pairs are changed at the completion of a teaching unit, usually four to eight weeks. Since all these programs started this academic year, there has not been sufficient time to measure the effectiveness of using peer tutoring to improve academic achievement. However, the teachers and the students have already observed and commented on several benefits. First of all, the teachers have found that the students are less frustrated and that classroom management is easier because each student is receiving one-on-one attention. In addition, with peer tutoring teachers are better able to focus instruction on those students needing individual attention while the rest of the class is engaged in their peer tutoring activity. The students have also demonstrated that they enjoy peer tutoring. They like the fact that they share their work with someone else and the less able students feel that peer tutoring allows them the opportunity to participate in the lesson because the one-on-one relationship is less intimidating. In the cross age peer tutoring program, the older students feel important because the program allows them an opportunity to help another student. Consequently, peer tutoring has boosted their self-esteem and their self-confidence.

Though the evidence in favor of using peer tutoring to improve academic and social skills is overwhelming for both tutors and tutees, there are some educators that feel that such a strategy is flawed. One argument is that it is unfair to have one student responsible for the learning of another student and to burden that student with having to explain or teach another student material that he/she already knows. The argument here is that the tutor will be in effect wasting his/her time because peer tutoring does not provide any benefit to the more able student. However, as has been seen in all the studies mentioned, the tutor and the tutee have both benefited from peer tutoring. I feel strongly that there is great benefit to be had in a situation where, for example, students practice their oral reading fluency in pairs, mutually offering correction, feedback, and praise and these pairs. Furthermore, "improved academic outcomes are frequently reported for both tutor and tutees, and in many cases the gains of the tutors are greater" (Topping, 1989, p. 490).

There are also fears that peer tutoring will become "…our dominant instructional strategy" (Randal, p. 16). However, in all of the studies I read, peer tutoring was promoted as an additional component of the reading program that could serve to enhance reading skills. None of the researchers felt that peer tutoring should be the sole strategy used to develop reading skills. In addition, all of the studies highlighted the various components involved in peer tutoring requiring careful planning, organization and monitoring by the classroom teacher. When a peer tutoring program is structured properly, both the tutor and the tutee can benefit greatly academically as well as socially. Peer tutoring offers opportunities for everyone, tutor, tutee and the classroom teacher, to benefit from the engaging and cooperative learning relationship.

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Olmscheid, Carey (1999). The effectiveness of peer tutoring in the elementary grades. ERIC Document No. 430959.

Randal, Vickie. (1999). Cooperative learning: abused and overused? Gifted Child Today Magazine, 22, 14-16.

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Unger, Harlow G. (1996). Encyclopedia of American education, Vol. 2. New York: Facts on File, Inc.

Wagner, Lilya (1982). Peer teaching: historical perspectives. Connecticut: Greenwood Press.

Interview a staff developer who was instrumental in implementing a peer tutoring program at an inner-city school.