Paired reading programme boosts attainment for Year 5 pupils, according to new research today

The Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) has today (16 October) released findings from its independent evaluation of the paired reading programme, Peer Assisted Learning Strategies UK (PALS-UK), which shows it has a positive impact on pupils’ reading skills.

The programme, delivered by academics at Nottingham Trent University and the University of Birmingham, aims to raise reading skills by developing pupils’ oral reading fluency, their reading comprehension, and their motivation to read. Pupils work in pairs to complete structured reading activities. 

The independent evaluation of PALS-UK, led by Manchester Metropolitan University and funded through the Department for Education’s Accelerator Fund, saw 4,800 Year 5 pupils across 114 schools take part. In half of the schools, teachers delivered the PALS-UK programme, while the other half continued with their ‘business as usual’ practice.

The analysis found that pupils in primary schools using the PALS-UK programme made, on average, two months’ additional progress in reading compared to pupils in the schools who did not. These results have an EEF security rating of moderate to high, meaning there is a good level of confidence in this result.

When looking specifically at the impact of the programme on pupils experiencing socio-economic disadvantage, the evaluation found that those eligible for Free School Meals (FSM) made an average of one months’ additional progress compared to their peers in schools not running the programme.

The EEF stressed that this finding, however, is less secure than the finding for all pupils and should not be interpreted as evidence that the programme is less effective for disadvantaged pupils.

Further analysis included in the evaluation suggested that the progress levels for children eligible for FSM and for other children in schools receiving PALS-UK were very similar. 

PALS was originally developed by academics from Vanderbilt University in Tennessee and the EEF’s new evaluation adds to evidence from previous evaluations conducted in a United States context. The EEF is exploring funding a larger trial of the programme.

Emily Yeomans, co-chief executive of the EEF, said: “To see such an uplift in reading skills for pupils as part of this programme is incredibly exciting and this evaluation allows us to have confidence in this programme’s potential as a tool to boost reading levels in schools across England, skills that are vital to a young person’s overall education.”

Professor Helen Breadmore from University of Birmingham, who also delivered the programme, said: “Peer assisted learning strategies are used widely in the US with reports of positive results on pupils’ reading skills.

“Most trials have been small up until this point, so our project and these findings are a massive step forward. We’re delighted that not only did teachers and pupils like this approach to paired reading, but it also had a real impact on their reading outcomes.”

Alongside the results of the PALS-UK programme, the EEF has published a further four evaluation reports today. 

These include ‘Community Apprentice’, a social action programme aiming to develop non-cognitive skills of social confidence, teamwork and self-efficacy in Year 10 pupils; ‘Mathematical Reasoning’, aimed at improving mathematical attainment for Year 2 pupils by promoting an understanding of numbers, quantitative reasoning and problem solving;, and ‘EEFective Kent Project’, which saw EEF partner with Kent County Council to support take-up of evidence-based programmes, and training and the developing research champions to advocate for evidence-informed education.

A further evaluation report released today looked at the early roll-out of the Early Career Framework which ran in 2020, prior to the national policy being launched the following year.