Peer-assisted Learning

Peer tutoring is the most obvious example of school children consciously assissting others to learn, and in doing so, learning more effectively themselves. However, Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) also encompasses peer modelling, peer education, peer counselling, peer monitoring and peer assessment. These are differentiated from other more general "co-operative learning" methods which are not included in this book. The book blends descriptions of good practice with research findings on effectiveness. It aims to be accessible and useful to educators and other practitioners and should also be of interest to the research community. "Peer Assisted Learning" is presented as a set of dynamic, robust, effective and flexible approaches to teaching and learning, which can be used in a host of different settings. The book describes procedures which can be applied to all areas of curriculum in schools. They can be used with learners of all levels of ability, including gifted, disabled and second language learners. Many of the contributors to the book are from North America, while others are from Europe and Australia. Applicability of these methods is worldwide.For many readers, the general idea of peer tutoring will be familiar. However, reciprocal tutoring, classwide tutoring, paired learning methods and the deployment of students with special needs as tutors may be less familiar. So the reader's understanding of peer tutoring is likely to be deepened and extended by the book. The establishment of the broader concept of peer assisted learning should enable the reader to see many new possibilities and make new connections to help develop their existing practice. This book should be of interest and use to teachers and those who employ, train, support, consult with and evaluate teachers. Many chapters aim to help teachers to replicate these cost-effective procedures in their own school environment. A practical resources guide is included. The book should also be of interest to those who have an academic and/or research interest in the field, including education and psychology departments in universities and colleges. In addition, community educators might be interested in the implications for action beyond school, as might employers and others interested in post-school training.

"Keith Topping and Stewart Ehly have produced a comprehensive overview of educational research and practice in the domain of peer-assisted learning. I recommend the book for researchers and practitioners in this increasingly popular field."
—Roehampton Institute-London.

"Its abundance of information on the variants of PAL, explicitly based on scientific evidence, its large number of thought-provoking ideas regarding application in the present as well as recommendations for more research in the future, make this a very interesting book."
—British Journal of Educational Psychology.

"Providing descriptions of good practice blended with research findings on effectiveness, the chapters detail procedures that can be applied to all areas of the school curriculum, and can be used with learners of all ability levels, including gifted students, students with disabilities, and second language learners."
—ERJC Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood

Keith Topping, Stewart Ehly

Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) involves children in school consciously assisting others to learn, and in so doing learning more effectively themselves. It encompasses peer tutoring, peer modeling, peer education, peer counseling, peer monitoring, and peer assessment, which are differentiated from other more general "co-operative learning" methods. PAL is not diluted or surrogate "teaching"; it complements and supplements (but never replaces) professional teaching--capitalizing on the unique qualities and richness of peer interaction and helping students become empowered democratically to take more responsibility for their own learning. In this book, PAL is presented as a set of dynamic, robust, effective, and flexible approaches to teaching and learning, which can be used in a range of different settings. The chapters provide descriptions of good practice blended with research findings on effectiveness. They describe procedures that can be applied to all areas of the school curriculum, and can be used with learners of all levels of ability, including gifted students, students with disabilities, and second-language learners. Among the distinguished contributors, many are from North America, while others are from Europe and Australia. The applicability of the methods they present is worldwide. Peer-Assisted Learning is designed to be accessible and useful to teachers and to those who employ, train, support, consult with, and evaluate them. Many chapters will be helpful to teachers aiming to replicate in their own school environments the cost-effective procedures described. A practical resources guide is included. This volume will also be of interest to faculty and researchers in the fields of education and psychology, to community educators who want to learn about the implications of Peer Assisted Learning beyond school contexts, and to employers and others involved in post-school training.

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