Even though students may share a grade, not all students read at the same level, especially in the elementary years. Some students read more fluidly and possess a stronger grasp of vocabulary than others. A high-level student paired with a low-level student may become bored or face little challenge while the low-level student struggles to keep up and follow along. Pairing students of similar reading abilities together somewhat prevents this problem; however, two low-level students paired together may achieve little progress as neither can help the other. Often buddy reading programs involve pairing students from an older grade with a younger one in an effort to give younger students a boost in reading.
Because a teacher divides students into many pairs for buddy reading, a teacher cannot possibly supervise all pairs at all times. A teacher cannot ensure all pairs stay on task, that pairs are treating each other with respect, especially toward students who struggle with reading or even stutter while reading. With buddy reading a teacher is also unable to help students when they encounter unfamiliar words or correct them when they mispronounce words.
Reading aloud generally takes longer than reading quietly to yourself, and reading buddies read aloud to each other. Thus, completing a book may require more time than reading alone. Students cannot perform buddy reading at home; the activity must be done entirely in class. Certain pairs will finish faster than others, and will need a post-activity or another book to begin. Teachers should plan for slow readers possibly not even finishing in the allotted time.
An effective buddy reading program exposes children to a variety of texts. In this way, the success of a buddy reading program depends in part on the resources available to the classroom. Having all pairs read the same book at once may not be possible within a teacher's resource budget; if a school has a library, teachers can select books for students or have students pick out their own books. However, this can be time-consuming and buddies may not agree on which books they would like to read.