Welcome to LCCC’s Center for

Career Pathways & Literacy

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

Your Presenters:

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 5th 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.

Some sobering facts from the National Institute for Literacy:

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.

And it continues…..

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 am I getting myself into ?

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!!!!!!!!!

What am I getting myself into?

Please take this short survey on Adult Learner Characteristics.

We will review the answers in a little while.

Adult Learner Characteristics

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.

Characteristics and Needs of Adult Learners:

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.

Adults learn best when…..

Now a visit to one of our classrooms

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 as a Tutor

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 as a Tutor

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 as a Tutor

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 as a Tutor

Your role is to: Be an agent of change

Help ≠ Doing

Help = Empowering

Help = Providing Tools and Support

Your Role as a Tutor

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.

Your First Meeting

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.

Your First Meeting

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?”

Your First Meeting

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.

Your First Meeting

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.

Tips from Tutors to Tutors

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.

Next Steps

And now a little inspiration……

The Big Finish

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uizXjrTCaYs

Have a wonderful Holiday Season. We

hope you will join us in 2012. We have the privilege of helping adults change their

lives!!!!

Thank you for Coming!!!!