Cross-Age Tutoring
Cross-age tutoring is a teaching technique under which the older students mentor their peers with academics. This modus operandi not only encourages learning, but also improves social interaction, and tutors gain a sense of responsibility, while students presenting their difficulties benefit from individual guidance and mentorship.
Cross-age tutoring is one of the ways through which the older students who serve as tutors can benefit a lot. The program encourages them to learn more about the subjects, helps them to develop leadership and communication skills, and finally creates a sense of responsibility in them. For example, when a high school student teaches a fifth grader how to do mathematics, he/she helps the younger student to master the ideas but in turn, he/she gains better understand of his/her math and the student is prepared for his/her future academic challenges.
Cross-age tutoring is a process where older and younger students learn from each other. Younger students often get remarkable academic and social advantages from this process. They get the chance to know what the other students are struggling with, one another are doing and how to do it, and peer advice that they are really helpful for their learning process, making them more confident. A typical instance of this is a 2nd-grade student who is taught reading by a high school peer. He can acquire stronger language skills and grow a more favorable mindset about school because he is helped by a more relatable friend.
To make a cross-age tutoring program attractive and workable, one of the key factors is the careful pairing of tutors and tutees, before, of course, the training for the tutors and regular monitoring of progress. For example, the school can pair students in accordance with their mutual interest or jointly-arrange training workshops for older students on how to develop their tutoring skills more effectively. Regular feedback sessions not only help in the adjustment of the tutoring approach but also they make sure that the learning experience is benefiting both tutors and tutees.
No, cross-age tutoring was not•such weave into school curriculums without the providing a truly academic framework for it. The schools have the option of planning regular times for the tutoring sessions in either the elective periods or after school, in this process the older students earn their community service credits and the younger students get the necessary support in subjects such as math or reading. This integration both, adds another layer to the educational experience and strengthens the school community.