I’d heard of Peer-Assisted Leaning Strategies before reading the study by Saenz, et al. (2005) but never had it explained in such detail. Now that I understand the components a little better, I may try to implement some of these strategies in my classroom. Of course, it’d be nice to have the training, but it seems like I could try a few things even without the training.
The first thing I like about the program is that it allows ELL’s an opportunity to practice speaking the language they are learning. At my school, we are currently learning to use “front-loading” and “sentence frames” that give ELL’s a chance to practice the academic (CALPS) language before they commit anything to paper. I think this is extremely valuable, as students can’t write what they can’t say.
The second thing I like about PALS is that students are working on higher order language skills like summarizing and predicting, but (and this is a big “but") it’s at their own individual, instructional reading level. Unlike our currently adopted reading program, Open Court—which, according to a Fry’s Readability Test, has college level reading selections IN THE FIFTH GRADE—students get comprehensible input!!! What a concept! Our ELL’s actually get to understand what it is they’re reading. I like that. And so will they.
The other piece that is enticing about the PALS program is the collaborative nature of the system. Students get to partner up—a high with a low—to accomplish their task. This year we have really been striving to build a sense of community in not only our classrooms, but also the entire school. We’ve begun to implement the Tribes book, and have adopted the four “agreements” (attentive listening, mutual respect, appreciation, and right to pass) school-wide. The PALS system builds teamwork and mutual respect right into the partnership, with each student getting to be the tutor and the tutee.
Overall, this was a fascinating study that gave me many ideas to try in my classroom. I’m always searching for more collaborative and interactive ways for students to approach text, and this approach seems successful and easy to use.
The first thing I like about the program is that it allows ELL’s an opportunity to practice speaking the language they are learning. At my school, we are currently learning to use “front-loading” and “sentence frames” that give ELL’s a chance to practice the academic (CALPS) language before they commit anything to paper. I think this is extremely valuable, as students can’t write what they can’t say.
The second thing I like about PALS is that students are working on higher order language skills like summarizing and predicting, but (and this is a big “but") it’s at their own individual, instructional reading level. Unlike our currently adopted reading program, Open Court—which, according to a Fry’s Readability Test, has college level reading selections IN THE FIFTH GRADE—students get comprehensible input!!! What a concept! Our ELL’s actually get to understand what it is they’re reading. I like that. And so will they.
The other piece that is enticing about the PALS program is the collaborative nature of the system. Students get to partner up—a high with a low—to accomplish their task. This year we have really been striving to build a sense of community in not only our classrooms, but also the entire school. We’ve begun to implement the Tribes book, and have adopted the four “agreements” (attentive listening, mutual respect, appreciation, and right to pass) school-wide. The PALS system builds teamwork and mutual respect right into the partnership, with each student getting to be the tutor and the tutee.
Overall, this was a fascinating study that gave me many ideas to try in my classroom. I’m always searching for more collaborative and interactive ways for students to approach text, and this approach seems successful and easy to use.
