Peer Tutoring
As described in the Case study, Group Working, the activities and examples used in the DEEP professional development materials strongly encourage use of group working both for teachers and their pupils. Short video clips showing how pupils can teach each other are part of the DEEP resources on the hand held computer.
Case Study: A common project approach - South Africa
Within the Eastern Cape a common approach has been developed by project teachers that enable all students within a class to develop fluency and confidence in using ICT within a very short time frame. They worked with a group of 5 or 6 of their most confident students for an hour or so daily over a period of one or two weeks. This is sometimes done during lessons, sometimes after school; students are keen to stay on to use the computers, cameras and scanners. Each student then becomes a group leader whose task it is to share their expertise with peers.
The research team noted a range of related outcomes from this new practice:
- Student leaders took seriously the responsibility of ensuring each member of their group had an equal turn in practice and instruction, an almost balletic routine in the sharing of touch pad or stylus was observed.
- The approach was efficient in ensuring that students learned basic ICT skills quickly.
- New social skills were developed.
- Peer teaching and learning enabled students to be relaxed; they felt free to explore. Many developed exceptional fluency in a range of softwares through experimentation, quickly outstripping their teachers.
- This collaborative approach of 'expert' leaders permeated classroom organisation more generally.
- Students' literacy and oral competence was increased.
Case Study: Hosni's experience
A similar approach to peer tutoring was developed by some of the teachers in Cairo. One participant, Hosni told the DEEP researchers about three pupil leaders in his maths class: 'S, A and O (the three leaders) all went to O's house with other classmates - this is the first time - I was astonished - I had taught them a little, O was feeling leadership - so he invited his classmates home to learn more.'
Interviewer - 'Did you find this threatening?'
Hosni - No! He learns me also - he taught me a lot of web sites... in computer, all of us are learning"
