Students who are ready to teach a skill pair up with a student hoping to learn the skills. The Learner asks questions for 30 seconds. The student who is teaching answers the most important question and then practices the skill with the learner. Then roles are switched and the routine repeats where learner must now answer questions to demonstrate learning.
Integrating This Into Your Lessons
Peer Tutoring Routine – Question, Answer, Practice, Switch (QAPS)
Having a structured routine for tutoring sessions helps students move through the process effectively. For example, the roles are Teacher and Learner. Round one: Learner poses questions about topic or skill to be learned while the teacher notes important questions to answer first. Round two: Teacher answers questions and models the skill or task to be learned. Round three: Learner practices and Teacher offers feedback. Round four: Learner teaches the Teacher the skill or task. The teacher follows the Learner’s directions and offers feedback of any missed steps. Tutoring should happen routinely in each unit providing a vehicle where students know how to ask for help. The skills for making an appointment for tutoring should be diverse to ensure that all students are both tutors and learners at different times.
Strengths of this routine:
- promotes critical thinking
- encourages collaboration
- requires students to use and develop language skills
- develops appreciation of the talents and strengths of others
- students can efficiently clarify confusions and build confidence