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Abstract
Cross age peer tutoring is a direct instructional intervention in which academic stimuli is repeatedly presented to a younger child by an older child and immediate feedback in the form of praise or correction is provided. In this paper, the effect of cross age peer tutoring on the early literacy skill of letter identification was examined. Six upper elementary students verified as having a learning disability served as tutors to six kindergarten students who had not mastered letter identification skills. The DIBELS letter naming fluency probe was used to measure the effects of cross age peer tutoring over ten weeks and at one week post-intervention. In addition, satisfaction was obtained from the tutees, tutors and classroom teacher, Visual analysis of a multiple baseline design across letter groups revealed strong acquisition effects for all participants. Three participants obtained a level of acquisition similar to that of a non-referred peer. Consumer satisfaction ratings were favorable across participants, tutors and teacher. Implications of these findings and directions for future research are explored.
