This independent evaluation by the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) has found a positive impact on pupils’ reading skills from the paired reading programme. On average, two months’ additional progress in reading compared to pupils in the schools who did not.
Peer Assisted Learning Strategies UK (PALS-UK) is a whole-class, structured peer tutoring intervention aiming to improve reading comprehension, oral reading fluency and overall reading attainment of pupils in Key Stage 2. Pupils work in pairs to complete structured reading activities.
Teachers receive one day of initial training and a half-day of top up training, after which they support pupils to participate in PALS-UK sessions for 30 – 35 minutes three times a week for 20 weeks. Pupils are paired and take part in four activities in each session: partner reading, re-tell, paragraph shrinking and prediction relay.
4,800 Year 5 pupils across 114 schools took part. In half of the schools, teachers delivered the PALS-UK programme, while the other half continued with their ‘business as usual’ practice.
The analysis found that pupils in primary schools using the PALS-UK programme made, on average, two months’ additional progress in reading compared to pupils in the schools who did not.