Describes a study conducted at the University of West Florida with the Navy that investigated the effects of cooperative tutoring on academic performance. Treatments for the experimental and control groups are described, and performance based on cognitive style as determined by scores from the Group Embedded Figures Test is discussed. (24…

Describes the development of Project 4-Health, a California program that recruits and trains teenagers to deliver a tobacco education program to children ages 9-12. The program was based on studies involving the social context of tobacco use, a survey of 4-H members, and randomized field trials of the prevention curriculum. (LP)

Reports a study that examined whether a collaborative peer tutoring program would improve urban seventh graders' self- concept and attitudes toward school. Pretesting and posttesting indicated that students in the collaborative peer tutoring program demonstrated significant improvements in self-concept and attitudes toward school as compared with…

Sixteen students with learning disabilities or at risk of failure in foreign language study participated in a peer tutoring program with Spanish vocabulary. The classwide reciprocal peer tutoring system was found to be a feasible component of foreign language instruction, as high levels of Spanish words were learned and maintained, and incidental…

Twenty elementary teachers were supported in developing curriculum-based measurement and peer-mediated instruction to serve math students with learning disabilities (LD); 10 of the teachers also used decision rules and specialized adaptations when student progress was inadequate. Teachers implemented the specialized adaptation with respectable…

Research-based reading interventions (peer tutoring, reciprocal teaching, effective teaching principles, computer-aided instruction, and two direct instruction models) were implemented by 37 special-education resource teachers working with 176 elementary school students with mild disabilities. The computer-assisted, reciprocal, and direct…

This article explains how cooperative learning techniques can be used to teach interpersonal social skills, describes the cognitive-behavioral model for treating deficits in social problem-solving skills, and outlines the critical steps for using peers as social skills trainers in classrooms with antisocial students. (DB)

This study compared traditional university supervision of 15 preservice students and peer coaching procedures used with 14 students (all in their first field-based special education practica). Results suggested both approaches were equally effective for increasing desired teacher behaviors and decreasing undesired teacher behaviors. Both students…

Describes two drug prevention programs, highlighting aspects with potential for violence prevention and suggesting areas where peer helpers could contribute. The paper examines noninteractive and interactive programs, explaining the group process and describing how to form small groups and how peer helpers can facilitate essential interactions…

Reading comprehension training using the Question Answer Relationship (QAR) strategy approach was conducted with 23 third-grade children. Following QAR training, classwide peer-assisted sessions were held to practice asking and answering questions. Results found that all children improved their individual question generation and question answering…

Survey examined practices in colleges and universities to prepare physical education teachers. Over half recommended or required field-based coaching. Equal numbers of peer teaching experiences occurred in skill and pedagogy courses. Pre-student teaching field experiences generally occurred in urban sites. Students teachers received approximately…

Describes a 20-hour training program to prepare peer tutors to work in a writing lab. Analyzes conversations, actions, and reflections of nine peer tutors during the training period. Finds that making student discovery central to tutoring and to tutor training develops effective tutors. (SR)

This article describes the training procedure used in a preservice curriculum and methods course to prepare elementary education students to receive and provide peer coaching. Results are presented from a survey of students who participated in the peer coaching experience. In general, preservice teachers expressed positive feelings about the…

Four high school students who were peer tutors to students with severe disabilities received social interaction training and were then compared to four controls. The training increased the frequency of initiations of interactions from tutors, increased the proportion of social rather than task interactions, and increased targeted social behaviors…

Discusses a project using cooperative learning as a tool for building learning communities of minority teachers in Texas, describing academic achievement, self-esteem, social skills, and collaboration in relation to 50 teachers participating in the project. Cooperative learning and teacher empowerment brought teachers closer together in a short…