How can peer tutoring be utilized with students with ASD?

I teach in a classroom with elementary-age children with autism. I would like to have my students take an active role in their education and support each other in their learning. How can I do this?

Written by: Mira Wellington, MA, BCBA, and Maithri Sivaraman, PhD, BCBA
Teachers College, Columbia University

Photographed by Antoni Shkraba ( pexels.com )

This is a great question – thank you! It is a common challenge for teachers of students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to create meaningful opportunities for their students to support one another in their learning. Research in special education, school psychology, and applied behavior analysis has shown that integrating peer‑mediated interventions into traditional teacher‑led approaches can yield notable benefits (Ashkenazi & Tereshko, 2025; Greenwood et al., 1984; Haas et al., 2019; Trinh & Celiberti, 2024). Peer-mediated interventions can help teachers as they are continually striving to create classrooms that foster individual confidence, build strong communities and capitalize on opportunities for peer engagement.

One of the most robust, evidence-based strategies to have students support each other in their learning is peer tutoring (Kamps et al., 1989; Morgan et al., 2020; Young et al., 2016). Peer tutoring is a peer-mediated intervention where students deliver instruction to each other (Devin-Sheehan et al., 1976). For the past 50 years, researchers have demonstrated the importance of peer tutoring as an effective method for teaching students with ASD new academic skills and enhancing social repertoires (Dineen et al., 1977; Petursdottir et al., 2007).

Peer tutoring arrangements typically involve one student acting as a tutor (teacher) and one student acting as a tutee (learner). When in the tutor role, students deliver instruction to a peer.

When in the tutee role, students receive instruction from a peer. There are many ways in which peer tutoring can be arranged. In some setups, one student is consistently the tutor and the other consistently the tutee. Young et al. (2016) implemented peer tutoring with students with ASD acting as tutees and neurotypical students acting as tutors. Tutors implemented discrete trial training with their peers with ASD to deliver instructional programs such as matching, following vocal directions, identifying and producing letter sounds, and motor imitation tasks.

In other setups, students may take turns in both roles. In a study by Kamps et al. (1994), within each tutoring dyad, elementary school students with and without ASD alternated between teaching and being taught. This arrangement allowed both partners to experience the roles of teacher and learner during reading accuracy and comprehension tasks. Similarly, the limited research on Lego-based therapy also emphasizes rotating roles among participants, providing each child opportunities to lead and to support peers (Hummel & McKenna, 2024).

Peer tutoring is versatile and can be used across skill domains to support students with ASD (Brady, 1997; Seo & Kim, 2019). Peer tutoring is often associated with academics, but utility extends to many different domains. In academic skills, peer tutoring has been used to teach math (e.g., math facts, computation, and word problems), literacy (e.g., reading fluency and phonics), and writing and spelling (Dineen et al., 1977; Kamps et al., 1994). In content area knowledge, peer tutoring has supported learning in social studies, science, and object labeling (e.g., Morgan et al., 2020).

In addition to academic benefits, peer tutoring also facilitates students with ASD to engage in important opportunities to interact with and work alongside neurotypical and neurodivergent peers. Peer tutoring provides students with ASD opportunities for structured peer interaction and increased social engagement. Researchers have shown that when students with ASD participate in peer tutoring, their social interaction with peers and positive peer approvals can increase (Young et al., 2016; Petursdottir et al., 2007; Kamps et al., 1994). Specifically, Young et al. (2016) observed that following peer-tutoring, there were substantial increases in social engagement between students with ASD and neurotypical peers during unstructured activities such as recess and free play.

Additionally, students in the tutor role also benefit from tutoring. These students develop important leadership skills, increased sense of responsibility, self-confidence, and motivation (Balmer, 1972; Galbraith & Winterbottom, 2011; Kamps et al., 1994). In a study with elementary-age neurotypical children serving as tutors for children with ASD, peer tutors reported that tutoring had brought them direct benefits by building confidence and encouraging prosocial behavior.

What types of concepts can be targeted?

When choosing which concepts to target in peer tutoring, a few practical considerations can guide the decision. Especially when first implementing peer tutoring or working with students who aren’t yet ready for higher-level academic concepts, it helps to prioritize skills with a clear correct or incorrect answer. Concepts like math facts, object labeling, or spelling are ideal for this purpose, since the tutor can easily tell whether the tutee’s response is right or wrong and can therefore deliver accurate praise, reinforcement, or error correction with confidence.

Peer tutoring is also a particularly effective tool for building fluency and supporting maintenance of already-acquired skills (Hofstadter-Duke & Daly, 2011). Rather than introducing brand-new concepts, teachers can use tutoring sessions as an opportunity for students to practice skills the tutor or tutee has already learned but still needs to master or perform more fluently. For example, a student who already knows math doubles facts can use peer tutoring to build faster responses.

Finally, it is worth choosing concepts that can be supported with visual aids or materials available in the classroom already. When students have materials like flashcards or checklists, they need less prompting from the teacher to get started, stay on task, and to know when the task is completed. This in turn fosters greater independence and confidence for both tutors and tutees.

Choosing Peer Tutors and Forming Dyads

Prerequisite Skills

To ensure the efficacy and independence of the dyads, both the tutor and the tutee should demonstrate foundational self-management skills before starting peer tutoring (Morgan et al., 2020). Ideally, after a few training sessions, a teacher should be able to give a verbal direction such as, “Class, it is time for peer tutoring”, and observe students independently transition into pairs, gather their specific materials, conduct the session, and record learner data.

When selecting potential tutors and tutees, it is important to look for prerequisite skills. Students remaining seated and engaged in a structured task for up to approximately 15 minutes while adhering to general classroom rules, following simple verbal or visual directions without requiring intensive prompting, and responding appropriately to peer initiations are all important prerequisites. Tutors may need to possess a few additional prerequisite skills such as reading or interpreting visual cues printed on instructional materials, along with the communication prerequisites that allow them to initiate peer interactions and deliver structured feedback to their peer tutee.

Forming Dyads

Once parents have consented to peer tutoring, teachers should consider two main factors when forming dyads. First, behavioral compatibility matters. Teachers should use their knowledge of the students, including classroom observations, input from colleagues, and behavioral data to ensure students with ASD are paired strategically, ideally placing together students who have a history of neutral or positive interactions. Students who require more intensive behavioral support may not be the best fit for a fully independent peer tutoring arrangement, though if staffing allows, they can still participate with adult support. Second, teachers should consider academic compatibility by setting up peer tutoring in a way that aligns with their goals for students. Dyads can be formed so that both tutor and tutee have similar academic needs. This allows both students to learn new things while strengthening other classroom instruction and maximizing instructional time. For example, pairing Student A and Student B together because both need to improve their multiplication fact fluency. Alternatively, dyads can be formed so that students have complementary strengths and weaknesses. For example, Student A acts as the tutor for double-digit addition (their strength) while Student B acts as the tutor for sight-word reading (their strength). In all these cases, teachers should obtain students’ assent and always offer other instructional opportunities if either the tutee or tutor does not wish to engage in peer tutoring at any point.

Structuring Effective Tutor Training

Once dyads are formed, teachers need to train students to be effective tutors. Training could begin with mastered or easy topics. Since tutoring itself is a brand-new social role and skill, keeping the academic content simple at first reduces the overall difficulty of the task for tutors (Hofstadter-Duke & Daly, 2011). Reinforcement and error correction should be at the core of the training, because the tutor’s response to the tutee is what drives learning (Morgan et al., 2020). Tutors should learn to deliver immediate, behavior-specific praise (e.g., “Great job reading that word!”) or a token after the tutee responds correctly. If the tutee responds incorrectly, tutors should learn to follow an error correction routine. An example of a correct procedure may include: first, tell the tutee the correct answer; next, show the tutee the question again; and last, have the tutee try it again. Tutor training typically starts with direct supervision, modeling (Datillo & Tereshko, 2026), and feedback. Sometimes, it may even involve having the tutor practice with an adult first. Once dyads can tutor effectively under close supervision, teachers can gradually withdraw adult support and promote independent peer tutoring.

Key Takeaways

Ultimately, integrating peer tutoring into the classroom has the possibility to transform the learning environment from being teacher-centric to student-driven. By systematically training dyads, selecting clear target concepts, and deliberately fading adult prompts, teachers can foster both academic growth and social-communication skills. Implementing evidence-based, peer-mediated strategies not only builds a supportive, interdependent classroom culture but also empowers students with autism to take an active, confident role in their own education and the collective success of their peers.

References

Ashkenazi, J., & Tereshko, L. (2025). A treatment summary of peer modeling. Science in Autism Treatment, 22(2).

Balmer, J. (1972). Project Tutor-Look! I can do something good!. Teaching Exceptional Children, 4(4), 166. https://doi.org/10.1177/004005997200400404

Datillo, S., & Tereshko, L. (2026). A treatment summary of modeling. Science in Autism Treatment, 23(7).

Devin-Sheehan, L., Feldman, R. S., & Allen, V. L. (1976). Research on children tutoring children: A critical review. Review of Educational Research, 46(3), 355-385. https://doi.org/10.2307/1170008

Dineen, J. P., Clark, H. B., & Risley, T. R. (1977). Peer tutoring among elementary students: Educational benefits to the tutor. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 10(2), 231-238. https://doi.org/10.1901/jaba.1977.10-231

Galbraith, J., & Winterbottom, M. (2011). Peer‐tutoring: what’s in it for the tutor?. Educational Studies, 37(3), 321-332. https://doi.org/10.1080/03055698.2010.506330

Greenwood, C. R., Dinwiddle, G., Terry, B., Wade, L., Stanley, S. O., Thibadeau, S., & Delquadri, J. C. (1984). Teacher-versus peer-mediated instruction: An ecobehavioral analysis of achievement outcomes. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 17(4), 521-538. https://doi.org/10.1901/jaba.1984.17-521

Greer, R. D., & Polirstok, S. R. (1982). Collateral gains and short‐term maintenance in reading and on‐task responses by inner‐city adolescents as a function of their use of social reinforcement while tutoring. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 15(1), 123-139. https://doi.org/10.1901/jaba.1982.15-123

Haas, A., Vannest, K., & Smith, S. D. (2019). Utilizing peers to support academic learning for children with autism spectrum disorder. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 12(3), 734-740. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40617-019-00363-4

Hummel, K., & McKenna, K. (2024). A treatment summary of Lego®-Based Therapy. Science in Autism Treatment, 21(2).

Hofstadter-Duke, K. L., & Daly, E. J., 3rd (2011). Improving oral reading fluency with a peer-mediated intervention. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 44(3), 641-646. https://doi.org/10.1901/jaba.2011.44-641

Jones, V. (2007). ‘I felt like I did something good’—the impact on mainstream pupils of a peer tutoring programme for children with autism. British Journal of Special Education, 34(1), 3-9. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8578.2007.00447.x

Kamps, D. M., Barbetta, P. M., Leonard, B. R., & Delquadri, J. (1994). Classwide peer tutoring: An integration strategy to improve reading skills and promote peer interactions among students with autism and general education peers. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 27(1), 49-61. https://doi.org/10.1901/jaba.1994.27-49

Kamps, D., Locke, P., Delquadri, J., & Hall, R. V. (1989). Increasing academic skills of students with autism using fifth grade peers as tutors. Education and Treatment of Children, 12(1), 38-51.

Morgan, G. A., Kim, J. Y., & Fienup, D. M. (2020). Effects of nonreciprocal peer tutoring with preschool students. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 13(4), 950-954. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40617-020-00422-1

Petursdottir, A. L., McComas, J., McMaster, K., & Horner, K. (2007). The effects of scripted peer tutoring and programming common stimuli on social interactions of a student with autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 40(2), 353-357. https://doi.org/10.1901/jaba.2007.160-05

Trinh, M., & Celiberti, D. (2024). Treatment Summary: Behavioral sibling training Science in Autism Treatment, 21(1).

Young, K. R., Radley, K. C., Jenson, W. R., West, R. P., & Clare, S. K. (2016). Peer-facilitated discrete trial training for children with autism spectrum disorder. School Psychology Quarterly, 31(4), 507. https://doi.org/10.1037/spq0000161

Reference for this article

Wellington, M., & Sivaraman, M. (2026). Clinical Corner: How can peer tutoring be utilized with students with ASD? Science in Autism Treatment, 23(9)

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How Can Peer Tutoring Be Utilized with Students With ASD?