It was when I discovered that I could
train 5 year olds to be computer tutors that I really got excited…
I had spent the previous three years
creating the Dolphin System, an ICT skills peer-tutoring scheme for Key Stage 2
pupils, and my research in the area was confirming that peer tutoring was a very
powerful method of learning and teaching. I’d
found that many children really enjoyed helping others to learn and took
particular pride in their responsibilities, while those being tutored valued the
opportunity to learn at their own pace and appreciated having their own
‘special teacher’ to explain things to them. I wondered whether the methods I was using could be adapted
for younger pupils.
The Dolphin System was structured around
the Ladder of Success, a hierarchy of self-contained modules, which were cross
referenced to the ICT 5-14 Guidelines and QCA scheme of work.
Pupils learned new skills and then consolidated what they had learned by
teaching others in their class or elsewhere in the school.
The materials took the form of a mini intranet, with help buttons that
allowed those tutoring to remind themselves how to do things.
I decided to create a parallel set of
materials for younger pupils, using picture symbols. As with the Dolphin System proper, the key was to establish
the correct sequence of skills to allow the pupils to be completely independent.
The materials are in use throughout Key Stage 1 and we now have six
primary 1 tutors teaching the rest of their classmates!
Work with Nursery/Reception pupils is just beginning.
Further up the school, recent canvassing
of pupil views has highlighted the importance of selecting tutors carefully and
of giving children adequate time to consolidate before they are asked to teach.
In the light of this we are introducing a system of learning teams, where
two team tutors are responsible for tutoring a small group.
Early indications are that this approach is going to be successful.
Meanwhile, Teachers in 150 schools from
diverse parts of the UK have adopted Dolphin and the program has been commended
in several school inspections. The
following account describes the experience of one school in Cornwall.
Sandra Medley, Head Teacher at
Whitstone Community Primary School:
“Whitstone is a rural primary school
of 88 pupils. We cannot house a
computer suite but we have ensured an updated computer in each class and two
large teaching screens, one in the library and one in Class 3.
During the last 4 years we have focused
on getting the children up to agreed levels of competency and have had the
Dolphin System since September 2001 to support this. We were initially
interested because we found we did not have enough hours in the day to include
individual tutoring and assessment, especially for those children who did not
have their own computers at home. It was these children who were being left
behind their peer group.
In my class (years 2-4) I have
introduced Dolphin to the eleven Year 4 children.
Two of the children are presently acting as tutors and the younger
children in the class are keen to join in.
In Class 3 (years 4-6), all 34 children are participating, and there is
an effective tutoring system in place. The class teacher teaches himself for
each step of the ladder, and then tutors two children.
These two then tutor others, creating a snowball effect.
The ladder is well structured to
include all the aims and objectives suggested by QCA and the tutoring works
especially well, as the children gain an insight into each other’s needs.
We also now have something in place that is monitoring individual
progress - something that we all found difficult to achieve before.
With only 3
computers able to take the software at present, the ‘hands-on’ time is
restricted; but because of its success we shall endeavour to up-grade our other
computers so that we can use Dolphin across all of them.”