Peer tutoring to improve writing competence in primary education

La tutoría entre iguales para la mejora de la competencia escrita en educación primaria

Mariona Corcelles-Seuba, Universitat Ramon LlullFollow
Jesús Ribosa, Universitat Autònoma de BarcelonaFollow
Patricia Calaforra-Fabuel, Universidad Complutense MadridFollow

DOI

10.22550/2174-0909.4156

Abstract

Knowing how to write is essential for academic success and lifelong learning. This study presents and evaluates an innovative peer tutoring programme (“Reading and writing in pairs”) for improving the writing skills of primary school students. A pre-test-post-test design was used to assess improvements in the writing skills of 75 students from years five and six of primary education, and a descriptive design was used to analyse teachers’ and students’ perceptions of peer tutoring. The results showed significant improvements in all dimensions of writing skills apart from grammar. According to the participants’ evaluations, these improvements can be attributed to the highly structured organisation of the programme’s writing activity and effective interaction between tutor and tutee. Students and teachers alike reported an increase in motivation towards writing. However, two key challenges were identified for effective peer-tutoring practice: initial training for the role of tutor, and support for text revision and preparation of improvements activities by the tutor. In conclusion, the study’s results suggest that sharing the teaching role with students through peer tutoring can be an effective way to motivate and improve writing skills in primary education.

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Author Biography

Mariona Corcelles-Seuba. Doctor of Educational Psychology. Licentiate degree in Psychology and Philosophy. She is currently a teacher and researcher in the Blanquerna Faculty of Psychology, Educational Sciences, and Sport at the Universidad Ramon Llull. She is also a member of the “Research group on peer learning (GRAI)” and of the “Seminar on identity & new trajectories in education (SINTE)”. Her research interests include collaborative writing, learning by teaching, peer tutoring, co-teaching, and peer observation.

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6771-1251

Jesús Ribosa. Doctor of Educational Psychology (Inter-University Doctorate in Educational Psychology), with an international thesis based on a compilation of articles on students who learn by teaching through the creation of didactic materials (special doctoral prize from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona [UAB]). Bachelor’s in Primary Education with mention in English language (UAB). He is currently an assistant professor in the Department of Basic, Evolutionary, and Educational Psychology at the UAB and a member of the “Research group on peer learning (GRAI)” and of the “Seminar on identity & new trajectories in education (SINTE)”. He also trains teachers in the peer tutoring programmes that the GRAI promotes to improve reading comprehension and written expression. In addition, he is the editor of a training journal: Andamis: Revista del Postgrau Interuniversitari de Psicologia de l’Educació. His research interests include learning by teaching, peer tutoring, co-teaching, and peer observation.

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3551-0022

Patricia-Jara Calaforra-Faubel. Doctorate in Psychology (Faculty of Psychology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid [UCM]), licentiate degree in Pedagogy and teaching degree in Primary Education and Hearing and Language. She is currently associate professor in the Department of Experimental Psychology, Cognitive Processes and Speech Therapy (UCM). She teaches in the Faculty of Social Work on the Basic Psychology module and provides tutoring and supervision of final Bachelor’s and Master’s projects; she is also pedagogical coordinator at WeCoachMadrid. She has spoken at various conferences in Spain and internationally and published academic articles and various chapters. Participating member of innovation projects; member of the Research Group on Peer Learning (GRAI), and member of the Faculty of Psychology (UCM) research group Cognitive Psychology: Measuring and Modelling Processes, created on 22/12/2004 and validated in the GR201/04 call (currently a member of an R&D&i project, code: reference PID2022-136905OB-C22). Her research interests include writing processes, spontaneous written composition and its evaluation, creative and emotional writing, writing and metacognition, and gender perspective.

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4709-1109

Citación recomendada | Recommended citation

Corcelles-Seuba, M., Ribosa, J., & Calaforra-Faubel, P. J. (2025). Peer tutoring to improve writing competence in primary education [La tutoría entre iguales para la mejora de la competencia escrita en educación primaria]. Revista Española de Pedagogía, 83(291), 363-381. https://doi.org/10.22550/2174-0909.4156