Given that many schools have limited resources and a high proportion of students who present with deficits in early literacy skills, supports aimed at preventing reading failure must be simple and efficient and generate meaningful changes in student learning. We used a randomized group design with a wait-list control to extend the work of Volpe,…

"Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies" is a peer-tutoring program for use in elementary school classrooms to improve student proficiency in reading. Its purpose is to supplement students' existing reading curriculum. "Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies" was developed for use with students with diverse academic needs and has been…

Although over 15 years have passed since Witt (1990) noted that no empirical evidence exists to support the contention that a collaborative approach to consultation leads to more positive outcomes than a hierarchical or expert driven approach, this issue generally remains unaddressed (Schulte & Osborne, 2003). While the literature documenting…

This review examines non-North American ideas about reading difficulties. Noted is the success of such tutorial programs as Reading Recovery, used in Australia, the United States, and New Zealand. The potential of a Vygotskian perspective on assessment and teaching for children experiencing reading difficulties is outlined. (Author/DB)

Seven peer tutoring interventions involving 14 elementary grade children with special needs were conducted to improve reading accuracy, fluency, comprehension, and vocabulary. Interventions were conducted in four settings. Results showed that children's academic responding was greater during peer tutoring than during routine classroom instruction.…

The effects of three types of tutoring treatments on the attitudes of learning-disabled and control students (n=124) in grades K-6 were compared. The tutoring programs, involving sign language and reading, produced beneficial effects on attitudes about peers, school, and learning, whereas control students did not experience comparable gains.…

Explores the applicability of "scaffolding" (adults providing support for children in tasks they cannot learn on their own) in the Reading Recovery program. Reading Recovery is an intervention program consisting of daily half-hour lessons taught by a teacher trained to diagnose and respond to reading disabilities. (MJP)