There is a wealth of resources available to us in our schools that we could all tap into. Professionals internationally have come to see that there will never be enough qualified personnel available to offer direct service to all those who need it. The result has been a surge in interest in non-professional involvement and for many schools that meant the students themselves. Learning is not always the result of direct professional teaching. Schools have increasingly sought to involve parents in the educational development of their children and have explored the use of peer and other nonprofessional tutors. Of all the techniques of non-professional tutoring, the simple and structured approach of paired reading has gained widespread acceptance and is now in use throughout the western world. The benefits to the tutee are enormous. International research has shown that a pupil’s reading age can increase by up to seven years (seven times the normal rate) after a term’s involvement in a paired reading project. Research within the Junior Certificate School Programme has also found such improvement with the positive impact being felt on both sides of this relationship. In addition, their confidence improves. Students see the tutor as a facilitator of learning. They enjoy being involved with the seniors in the school. Many begin to read for pleasure outside of school, which is the real mark of success. The fifth year students also benefit. Indeed, the JCSP research on the impact of peer tutoring on the tutor’s reading also indicates great improvement in their reading ability. While thoroughly enjoying the status of being “tutors”, they themselves develop a more positive attitude to reading and an awareness of spelling patterns. They generally commit themselves wholeheartedly to the programme. Once trained, they tend to do most of the work. Nevertheless, it does take teachers’ time, between training, canvassing first years, matching tutors with tutees, generally supervising, record keeping and evaluating. However, the returns on that time are really great when one thinks of the improvements all round and the shift to co-operative spirit between students in the school.