Volunteer Tutor Orientation

 Mary Kovalchick-Assistant Director for the Center for Career Pathways and Literacy  Gloria Lowell—Tutor Coordinator/GED Instructor  Mary Peckitt and Ambrose Smith- GED Students

 The workforce Investment Act of 1998 defines Literacy as “an individual’s ability to read, write, speak in English, compute and solve problems at levels of proficiency necessary to function on the job, in the family of the individual and in society.”  More than 20% of the adult population-approximately 44 million people-read at or below a 5 th grade level. They can read a little but not well enough to fill out an application, read a food label, or read a simple story to a child.

 People with less than a high school education will be able to fill only 14% of the jobs of the future; 75% of unemployed adults have reading and/or writing difficulties  More than 40% of adults at the lowest level of literacy live in poverty, compared to fewer than 5% of those at the highest literacy levels  Illiteracy costs the U.S. economy $225 billion annually in lost revenues, taxes, and decreased industrial productivity.

What we expect of you :  A minimum of three hours per week of tutoring.  That you have or are working towards a Bachelors Degree.  Attendance at a Tutor Orientation and periodic professional development sessions.  Tutoring log where you document lessons worked on and next steps.

What you can expect from us :  A tutor coordinator who will support you in lesson planning, teaching resources, professional development activities, and learner assessment and who will act as a liaison between you and the student’s instructor  Monthly tutor support meetings  You can expect to be matched with a student whose needs meet your area of interest or expertise  Strong and clear guidelines for student participation in the tutoring program  A quiet place to work with students and………  STUDENTS WHO REALLY VALUE YOUR TIME AND APPRECIATE THE EXTRA HELP THEY ARE GETTING TO MEET THEIR GOALS!!!!!!!!!

Please take this short survey on Adult Learner Characteristics. We will review the answers in a little while.

Adult Learners:  Learn best when learning relates to their day to day lives.  Are not a captive audience; they can vote with their feet.  Are usually experiencing some sort of life change.  They have input into the selection of the content and even development of the learning experiences.

 The learning is connected to the vast background of knowledge and experience that the adult brings to the table.  The learning is both received and processed in more than one way.  The learning is collegial (mutually respectful) and directed at solving specific job-related problems.

As a volunteer tutor:  I will continually strive to identify and meet the needs of the learner(s).  I tutor by learning about and applying new techniques during my instruction.  To demonstrate the effectiveness of the tutoring sessions, I will document the instructional strategies I apply and how the learner is affected.  Whenever possible, I will share my tutoring experiences with my peers so we can all learn and grow together.

Your role is to:  Work as a partner with your learner to define and plan the work you do together; when necessary offer your student choices instead of making decisions yourself.  Meet regularly with your learner, be prepared for lessons, and employ a consistent but flexible instructional format.

Your role is to :  Teach by example; explain and model what skilled readers and writers do.  Assume your learner is smart and capable of learning; have high expectations for success.  Teach your learner what s/he can do (and how to do it) outside of the tutoring session in order to build skill(s), especially by practicing reading. (Time management, Organization, problem solving).

Your role is to:  Build instruction based on your learner’s strengths, experiences, needs, and interests; use real life situations and examples.  Encourage your learner to bring materials and topics of interest to him/her to the sessions.  Treat your learner as an adult and as an equal.

 Your role is to:  Be an agent of change Help ≠ Doing Help = Empowering Help = Providing Tools and Support

 Get to know each other. Discuss hobbies and interests, family, jobs, daily life.  Establish a meeting place, day and time. Sign contract which will include expectations regarding attendance, scheduling, and cancellation.  Exchange and confirm contact information.  Start to discuss ground rules.

 Discuss current reading and writing practices, goals and challenges. Examples: “What kinds of things do you read/write during a normal day at home, at work, and when you’re out?” “What are some things that are challenging for you about reading/writing?”  Provide an overview of a typical session.

 If possible (not a priority)- Implement one or two activities related to your student’s needs and interests (based on information obtained from your coordinator).  Take turn expressing how the session went. Examples: “What did you learn today?” “Is there anything that needs to be clarified?” “Is there anything we should do differently next time?”

 Begin the process of documentation so it becomes routine.  Discuss plans for your second meeting; confirm meeting time and place and assignments to be completed.

 Don’t be discouraged by slow progress; it takes time to get to know your learner and establish a good learning routine-learning takes time.  Your learner is likely to be more nervous that you are.  Relax, have fun, be creative.  Adult learners are different from children; make adult learning different from school.

 We would love you to join our efforts and very much appreciate you volunteering your time.  If you feel that you are the right fit for us, please fill out the Tutor Preference Form and give it to the Coordinator.

 And now a little inspiration……

Have a wonderful Holiday Season. We hope you will join us in We have the privilege of helping adults change their lives!!!!