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Benefits of Small Group Reading Instruction

Small-group reading instruction is not new. In fact, you may even remember being in a reading group as a young child. Take a moment to think about the various literacy groups you were in as a student or have seen as a teacher. What do you think is beneficial about these groups? What could some of the drawbacks be?

While every instructional structure has its perks and drawbacks, the benefits of small-group instruction have withstood the test of time. To ensure that students are getting the best literacy instruction possible, teachers need to make sure they simultaneously employ best practices for both literacy and small-group instruction.

Small-Group Instruction: What are the benefits?

Vaughn et al. (2001) cites many benefits for small-group instruction. First, small groups give students an increased opportunity to share what they know. In small groups, there is also a larger amount of student collaboration which helps build relationships, not only between the teacher and the student, but also between the students themselves. This causes students to feel more included and in charge of their own learning (Serravallo, 2010).

Small-group instruction also gives teachers more chances for feedback. A smaller group allows teachers to check in more frequently with students, which in turn affords them the opportunity to correct any misunderstandings or praise students’ efforts and progress. In short, small-group instruction leads to more instructional time (Vaughn et al., 2001).

In addition, small-group instruction has been shown to be an efficient use of time for both teachers and students. Specifically, students who are placed into small strategy groups are learning exactly what they need next so they can continue to prosper. This, in turn, provides teachers with numerous formative assessment opportunities so they can then plan targeted and specific instruction based on their students’ real-time needs. This means time is not wasted trying to help students learn something for which they are not developmentally ready (Vaughn et al., 2001). In addition, small groups are more efficient than one-to-one instruction. In fact, a small group takes the same amount of time as an individual conference and allows teachers to work with many more students (Serravallo, 2010).

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, research has shown that small-group instruction is particularly beneficial for some of our most at-risk students. This includes students who are struggling, students of color, students of poverty, and English language learners (Duke & Varlas, 2019). This very important finding makes small-group instruction an essential best practice for any teacher, regardless of the grade level or content area they teach.

All these positive outcomes mean that students have the potential to learn more in small groups than when they are taught using other formats (Vaughn et al., 2001). Therefore, small groups are a must!

Are you curious? Want to take a deep dive on this topic?

To learn more about the benefits of small group reading instruction, visit the Professional Development Institute (PDI) website or our Small Group Practices to Reach All Readers and Writers course.

For over 27 years, PDI has provided high-quality and affordable online professional development courses to K-12 teachers worldwide. Our online courses are designed to offer practical strategies that can be implemented in classrooms immediately. All our courses are instructor-led and conducted entirely online. Graduate-level university credit for every PDI online course for teachers is available through the University of California San Diego Division of Extended Studies. PDI offers an extensive catalog of online courses that cover the most critical topics in today's classrooms.

References:

Duke, N. K. & Varlas, L. (2019). “Turn Small Reading Groups into Big Wins. “ ASCD. Retrieved 23 Dec. 2024 from https://www.ascd.org/el/articles/turn-small-reading-groups-into-big-wins

Serravallo, J. (2010). Teaching Reading in Small Groups: Differentiated Instruction for Building Strategic, Independent Readers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Vaughn, S., Hughes, M., Moody, S., & Elbaum, B. (2001). “Grouping Students Who Struggle With Reading” AdLit. Retrieved 23 Dec. 2024 from https://www.adlit.org/topics/learning-disabilities/grouping-students-who-struggle-reading