Peer tutoring is a cooperative learning method based on pairing people, being none of them a professional teacher of the other, who learns through a structured activity with a common goal. This goal is known and shared (as it would be the acquisition of a curricular competency such as reading comprehension, focused in this programme), and it is assumed through a structured interaction designed and planned by the teacher.
There are two reasons that support the potential effectiveness of peer tutoring.
First, the tutee (less expert student) learns thanks to the adjusted and permanent support from his tutor, within zone of proximal development. On the other hand, the tutor (more expert student) learns through teaching. Several studies conclude that when tutors are preparing to teach (structuring the information, taking responsibility and reflecting to convert it into knowledge) and interact with the tutee, they create opportunities to learn (Annis, 1983; Biswas, Schwartz, Vye and Leelawong 2005; Duran 2011). Moreover, if it is a bidirectional interaction where dialogue opportunities are created between both peers, the opportunities to learn through teaching are greater (Cortese, 2005).
The interaction among students, properly structured – as cooperative learning methods do (Monereo and Duran, 2001) – is a potential drive for significant learning. Through a structured interaction organized by the teacher, students provide pedagogical support though interactions that allow adjustment and customization to the pair’s needs.
