Gradual Release of Responsibility Instructional Model: Students' Mathematics Performance and Collaborative Skills

Mathematics achievement and collaboration skills are critical for student success; however, many secondary learners struggle to develop these competencies through traditional methods alone. The Gradual Release of Responsibility Instructional Model (GRRIM) aims to enhance academic performance and foster collaborative learning by progressively shifting responsibility from the teacher to the student. This study aimed to assess the impact of GRRIM on the performance of Grade 9 students in mathematics and collaboration, and to propose an action plan for incorporating peer tutoring alongside conventional teaching techniques. A quantitative descriptive design was employed, using a self-administered survey questionnaire to measure GRR's effects. Pretest and posttest data from the control and experimental groups revealed that, prior to the intervention, most students exhibited developing collaboration skills, with few demonstrating established skills. Following the intervention, the experimental group demonstrated a higher mean gain in collaboration skills (3.38) compared to the control group (3.27). In mathematics achievement, both groups initially performed at poor to average levels; post-intervention, gains were recorded for both groups, with the control group showing a mean gain of 7.30 and the experimental group 5.71. Statistical analysis confirmed no significant differences in pretest performance (p = 0.62) and pretest collaboration (p = 0.36), indicating initial comparability. For collaboration, experimental (p = 0.13) and control (p = 0.10) groups had p-values greater than 0.05, indicating no significant difference before and after the intervention. In mathematics performance, both groups showed significant differences between pretest and posttest scores (p = 0.00), leading to rejection of the null hypothesis. However, posttest performance (p = 0.46) and posttest collaboration (p = 0.37) indicated no significant difference between groups after the study. Findings suggest that GRRIM and traditional lecture methods improve mathematics performance and collaboration skills. An action plan was proposed to integrate peer tutoring with traditional teaching to promote achievement and collaborative learning further.