Cross age tutoring: alternatives to the reading resource room for struggling adolescent readers

Journal of Instructional Psychology, Dec, 2001 by Douglas Fisher

Finally, the basis for the strategic reading class was the integration of the language arts. As articulated by Fearn and Farnan (2001), students learn to read, write, speak, and listen simultaneously. The middle school teacher understood this and required that her students write every day at the middle school. In addition to the interactive journals that she kept with her students, the creation of text by the students for wordless books was key to their success. When the students wrote, they had to be able to read their writing.

In essence, the strategic reading class with its emphasis on cross age tutoring required quality literacy instruction on the part of the classroom teacher, authentic literacy experiences for middle school students, and regular feedback for students regarding their development. These factors seem to be key in assisting struggling adolescent readers as they join the literate community.

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