Jul 25, 2026 08:00:00

Research suggests that helping friends with reading can lead to improved academic performance in children.

A learning method developed to encourage children to read, in which two people read the same book aloud to each other, has been shown to improve reading comprehension. It is expected to cultivate the ability to read texts quickly and to understand them.

Full article: Peer Assisted Learning Strategies (PALS-UK) Increases Reading Attainment, Oral Fluency and Comprehension: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10888438.2026.2614770

Helping their friends to read can boost children's attainment
https://theconversation.com/helping-their-friends-to-read-can-boost-childrens-attainment-241516

This learning method is called 'Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies (PALS),' and it involves elementary school students pairing up, choosing a book they like, and having each other read the book aloud. If one student stumbles over a word while reading, the other student encourages them to try again. They then discuss what might happen next to deepen their understanding of the book.

The pairs are intentionally matched according to the children's reading abilities, and the key is to create a slight difference in the reading abilities of the two children.

PALS is a 20-week program consisting of three 35-minute sessions per week. The first four weeks are dedicated to training, where children learn how to correct reading mistakes, summarize content, and predict what will happen on the next half-page.

A study conducted in over 100 primary schools in the UK, including those that have implemented PALS, showed that PALS is effective in improving reading comprehension and reading speed. Comparing children who received PALS with those who did not, the group achieved an average improvement in reading comprehension equivalent to two months' worth of learning.

The teachers reported that 'this program fostered a culture of enjoying reading,' and that the children enjoyed casually discussing books with their friends and found summarizing the content in the fewest words possible to be a fun challenge.

Emma Vardy, an associate professor at Nottingham Trent University who is working to implement PALS, and her colleagues explain that while PALS has achieved some success in the UK, it may not be directly applicable to other cultures. For example, in the US, where PALS was developed, a points-based competitive approach was used, but this was removed when introducing it to the UK, and instead, verbal praise was used to motivate each other.