Reciprocal Teaching
Definition:
"Reciprocal teaching refers to an instructional activity in which students become the teacher in small group reading sessions," (Reading Rockets, 2014). Before this strategy can be used, students must learn how to guide a group discussion over a piece of reading material using the four strategies of predicting, generating questions, clarification, and predicting. The students learn these strategies by watching the teacher model them. After these strategies are learned, the students become the teachers of a small group, and they run their own discussions.
The steps to implementing Reciprocal Teaching:
"Reciprocal teaching refers to an instructional activity in which students become the teacher in small group reading sessions," (Reading Rockets, 2014). Before this strategy can be used, students must learn how to guide a group discussion over a piece of reading material using the four strategies of predicting, generating questions, clarification, and predicting. The students learn these strategies by watching the teacher model them. After these strategies are learned, the students become the teachers of a small group, and they run their own discussions.
The steps to implementing Reciprocal Teaching:
- Break the students into groups.
- Make one student the "teacher" to keep the group on task and moving through the steps.
- Give the students a reading passage.
- Have students predict what the passage is going to be about or what is going to happen next in the reading.
- Have students come up with questions as they read the material. The questions should be about things that they do not understand in the material. It could be phrases, vocab words, etc.
- In the clarification stage, students will bring up the questions they have generated. As a group, they will discuss the possible answers to these questions to help clarify any confusion.
- Have the the students summarize the material using the reading and their discussions. (All About Adolescent Literacy, 2014).
Benefits of this Strategy:
- Students learn to pick out important information from readings.
- Students learn to ask questions.
- Students learn to summarize (All About Adolescent Literacy, 2014).
Video 1: This short video gives an example on what reciprocal teaching should look like. The video shows a teacher modeling the strategy for her students Then, the students take over the discussion and perform the strategy on their own. Since the teacher has already modeled a correct discussion, the students do a very nice job of asking and answering questions. The teacher stays with the group the entire time to assess student learning and make sure the strategy is working.
Video 2: This is a two part video that explains what reciprocal teaching is, and it gives a great example of this strategy in action. The video starts out with the instructor teaching the class about reciprocal teaching. By going through this instruction, the teacher ensures that students know exactly what is expected of them. After the instruction, the students split into groups to practice the strategy of reciprocal teaching. The video focuses in on one group, and the instructor sits with this group. The group does a nice job of going through all of the steps of reciprocal teaching. This generates a very nice discussion over the reading material. The teacher steps in at times to clarify some confusion in the discussion, or to remind students of certain procedures. The teacher also gives the students a graphic organizer so they can record their answers to each section of this strategy. I feel this helps the flow of the discussion because the worksheet helps organize the students' thoughts.
Writing Component:
I like the idea the teacher in Video 2 had to tie writing into this strategy. She gave students a graphic organizer that they needed to fill out during the reading and the discussion. This writing gives students an opportunity to organize their thoughts to allow for better questions and discussion. The graphic orgainzer has spots to write predictions, any questions they have, clarifications through discussion, and a summary of the material.
Writing Standard addressed:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.W.2
Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
I like the idea the teacher in Video 2 had to tie writing into this strategy. She gave students a graphic organizer that they needed to fill out during the reading and the discussion. This writing gives students an opportunity to organize their thoughts to allow for better questions and discussion. The graphic orgainzer has spots to write predictions, any questions they have, clarifications through discussion, and a summary of the material.
Writing Standard addressed:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.W.2
Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
Sources:
Reciprocal Teaching. (2014). In All About Adolescent Literacy. Retrieved July 14, 2014, from
http://www.adlit.org/strategies/19765/.
Reciprocal Teaching (2014). In Reading Rockets. Retrieved July 14, from
http://www.readingrockets.org/strategies/reciprocal_teaching.
Reciprocal Teaching. (2014). In All About Adolescent Literacy. Retrieved July 14, 2014, from
http://www.adlit.org/strategies/19765/.
Reciprocal Teaching (2014). In Reading Rockets. Retrieved July 14, from
http://www.readingrockets.org/strategies/reciprocal_teaching.