Peer Support Interventions in Inclusive Classrooms

Supporting students with severe disabilities to access the myriad social and learning opportunities that exist within inclusive classrooms can be a challenge. Peer support arrangements are an evidence-based intervention for increasing social interactions and academic engagement while decreasing heavy reliance on individually assigned paraprofessionals. This chapter addresses the core features of this intervention and its anticipated outcomes. It also includes implementation steps and recommendations for intervention, as well as applications to diverse students and settings.

Peers as Change Agents

This chapter details the many advantages of utilizing peers as change agents in behavioral interventions, including being a readily available and free resource, increasing opportunities to respond, promoting generalization, being socially valid and culturally relevant, increasing student engagement with intervention, providing access to natural reinforcement, promoting social skill development, and supporting the development of peer social relationships. The chapter also positions peer-mediated interventions as relevant to the development of children and highlights the value and usefulness of identifying the behaviors the intervention is targeting and then emphasizing the importance of the peer’s role. This chapter also discusses the research supporting the effectiveness of peers as interventionists, indicating that they can be reliably trained to carry out interventions in schools.

Peer-Mediated Academic Interventions

Peer-mediated academic interventions (PMAIs) have a robust evidence base that support their use in classrooms to improve a variety of academic behaviors. In this chapter, we define PMAIs, discuss strengths and challenges of using these interventions in classrooms with diverse groups of learners, and provide a detailed review of the literature to support each of four highlighted PMAIs: peer tutoring, Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies, cooperative learning, and peer-mediated writing interventions. This chapter also introduces the practical chapters in this section, which cover each of the four highlighted PMAIs.

A New Conceptualization of Peer-Mediated Interventions

This introductory chapter presents an updated and comprehensive conceptualization of peer-mediated interventions based on contemporary research utilizing peers as change agents in schools. The current conceptualization of peer-mediated interventions (PMIs) includes peer-mediated academic interventions, peer-mediated behavioral interventions, and peer-mediated group supports. The chapter covers some of the advantages of peer-mediated interventions and provides a framework for the chapters in this volume.

Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies

Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies (PALS) is a peer tutoring program available in the areas of reading and mathematics that incorporates peers as change agents in academic intervention. Developed at Vanderbilt University by Douglas Fuchs, Lynn S. Fuchs, and their colleagues, PALS is currently available in reading from kindergarten through high school and in mathematics from kindergarten through sixth grade. PALS is designed for implementation in general education settings with all students, including students with disabilities, and research supports the use of both Reading PALS and Math PALS. We provide recommendations for the implementation of PALS, as well as considerations of diversity and equity.

Independent and Dependent Group Contingencies

Group contingencies include the arrangement of a common consequence for responding by members of a group. Independent group contingencies involve a common consequence being delivered to an individual student based on her performance. Dependent group contingencies involve the consequence being delivered to the entire group based on the performance of an individual or small group of students. Numerous variables may be altered in a group contingency and arranging an effective intervention requires planful incorporation of each. This chapter reviews the components of independent and dependent group contingencies and considerations when designing and implementing group contingencies in educational settings.

Peer-Mediated Pivotal Response Training

Peer-mediated Pivotal Response Training (PM-PRT) is a behavioral approach that incorporates instruction and practice opportunities on pivotal and socially significant skills (e.g., communication, playing with peers) for individuals diagnosed with developmental disorders in their everyday routines and environments. This chapter provides an overview of key components to successfully utilize the PM-PRT intervention with children in a variety of settings. The intervention includes a peer interventionist who may use selected strategies with a target student such as gaining attention, modeling, turn-taking, encouraging conversation, choice in tasks, and reinforcement of attempts during a play session. For example, the intervention may be implemented during recess and can be tailored to an individual’s target behaviors. The flexibility of PM-PRT allows it to be an effective and efficient intervention that promotes generalization across peers and settings.

Restorative and Conflict Resolution Interventions

Conflicts between peers are inevitable in schools, and schools must be equipped with strategies to assist students in avoiding conflicts and engaging in problem-solving when conflicts occur. Restorative practices and other conflict resolution interventions such as peer mediation are gaining popularity, particularly as an alternate framework to the overutilization of disciplinary punishment with ethnic minoritized students. This chapter discusses the effective use of restorative practices and conflict resolution interventions, with an emphasis on establishing these types of practices in schools using best practices. Particular attention is paid to the role of restorative practices in a social justice approach to serving students and families in schools.

Peer Tutoring

Peer tutoring is a popular intervention in which students are trained to work together to improve their academic skills. This chapter focuses on two types of peer tutoring strategies: classwide peer tutoring and individual peer tutoring. These strategies share common characteristics, but differ in their scope and goals. Practical recommendations for implementing both types of peer tutoring strategies are included, as are considerations of diversity and equity in implementing peer tutoring in schools. A sample protocol for peer tutoring is also included.

Peer-Mediated Behavioral Interventions

This chapter defines and describes peer-mediated behavioral interventions. This chapter introduces all peer-mediated behavioral interventions that directly train peers to work with other students to improve non-academic behaviors, including peer management interventions, peer-mediated social skills training, peer support arrangements, peer-mediated Pivotal Response Treatment, peer-mediated play interventions, and restorative and conflict resolution interventions. This chapter also briefly discusses the research supporting each of the interventions included in this section.