June 10, 2021
Taking it Beyond the Textbooks: Tutoring and TLC
Well it’s here – we are back in the swing of the school season, and discovering challenges, excitements, and new weekly schedules. As our students load the bus for another busy year, we wanted to shine a little light on the academic warriors and leaders outside of the schoolrooms: our hardworking and caring tutors. These dedicated heroes provide an invaluable service to our youth and their families in Wyoming, and across the country, aiding and bolstering students of all ages on their learning journey.
Teton Literacy Center (TLC) is one of these fantastic organizations working to provide the much-needed tutor programming to Teton County, Wyoming. The Hughes Charitable Foundation reached out to TLC to learn a little more about their amazing efforts.
Article Contributor: Carisa Barnett, Associate Director, Teton Literacy Center
Why is tutoring so important?
Tutoring is an invaluable aspect of learning for countless youth and adult learners. Within the realm of K – 12 learning, tutoring is pivotal for students who are behind their peers, especially in core subjects such as literacy and math. When these students participate in tutoring, they have the opportunity to revisit essential concepts they might be struggling with that their classmates have already mastered, and they have the opportunity to really dig into these concepts and move at a pace that is appropriate for them. For many students, this ultimately allows them to master concepts and catch up with their peers.
Furthermore, a significant benefit of tutoring that is often not discussed is the value of the tutor-student relationship. While some tutoring relationships are short and sweet as a student gets caught up on specific concepts, many span over multiple years allowing the student to build a strong relationship with a trusted adult in their lives that can transcend tutoring and merge into mentorship.
“Dilan loves his tutor, Dylan. When he first met him, he told me that he had the best tutor in the world. He has been so lucky to have his tutor for the last few years, and I have seen how they have grown their relationship."
– TLC Parent
Who does TLC serve?
At Teton Literacy Center (TLC), we primarily serve students who are six or more months behind in reading. For many of these students, reading has become a dreaded subject – which makes complete sense – no one likes to have to repeatedly do something he or she is not good at! Thus, a key part of tutoring at TLC is building confidence and making literacy fun.
The other key part is the relationship our students build with their tutor. As students feel comfortable and safe with their tutor, they begin to take the risks necessary for learning. And TLC is the ideal learning environment: students are in a one-on-one setting without the fear of peers judging them, there is no pressure on grades or test scores, and they are with a trusted adult who cares about them and their success. Within this setting, we see students not only begin to love reading, but also make significant gains in their reading skills, which are essential for success in all other subjects. Ultimately, as students catch up in reading and enter middle and high school, these tutoring relationships transform into academic mentorships, with tutors providing guidance and insight throughout adolescence in preparation for postsecondary success.
At TLC, we also strive to work with Teton County School District #1 teachers and administration to align our instruction with skills students are focusing on during the school day to help reinforce the invaluable work of our TCSD educators. We also utilize evidence-based curriculums to provide instruction in all of our tutoring lessons.
“Every student I have ever had that has gone to TLC has improved!”
– TCSD Teacher
What kinds of tutoring opportunities are available through TLC?
In addition to our one-on-one literacy tutoring programming, TLC staff lead small group tutoring sessions. These small group sessions focus on literacy, math or social-emotional skills and/or allow students with similar needs to learn alongside each other. For students in our one-on-one literacy program, small groups allow for a second day of tutoring, which is a proven strategy in tutoring success. For others who may not need the intensive one-on-one support, it is an opportunity to engage in the support they do need without taking a valuable spot in our one-on-one tutoring program, which tends to have a significant waitlist.
Additionally, for our middle and high school students, we partner with three community organizations – Teton STEAM, Teton Tutors, and Wyoming Stargazing – to provide tutoring in math and science courses such as geometry, algebra, trigonometry, biology, physics, etc. Like all other TLC services (and thanks to the Ellbogen Foundation’s “Graduate: All Students Successful Grant,” this opportunity is free to students: students simply must be involved in other TLC programming to participate.
Who should receive help from a tutor?
Tutoring can be a good option for students at any age, in any subject with which they are struggling, and getting help early prevents students from falling even further behind. At TLC, we are primarily targeting students who are six or more months behind in reading, and while our program serves K – 12 students, we recognize that if we can help close the learning gaps in early education and elementary schools, we are doing a greater service to students.
How can someone get connected with a tutor?
To access tutoring at Teton Literacy Center, we request that families review information around our tutoring program and complete the necessary application. Once the application has been completed, TLC will invite the student in for an intake assessment, during which we read with the student and discuss their interests. This allows us to understand how far behind the student is in reading, develop an instructional plan to address their learning gaps, and get to know students to best match them with a volunteer tutor.
After the application and initial intake session have been completed, TLC begins the process of matching students with a volunteer tutor. This process can take a while as we work to not only align the student’s schedule with a tutor’s, but to ensure that we find a tutor that will be a good match for the student. TLC does prioritize our waitlist based upon academic need. All TLC programs, including our tutoring program, are free for students and families.
If families are looking for tutoring outside of Teton County or in a subject other than literacy, they can connect with their student’s teacher or school for suggestions (indeed, many of our students are recommended to us by their school day teacher), they can research tutoring organizations in there area, or reach out to community organizations like the local library that might be able to point them in the right direction.
How can someone become a tutor?
At Teton Literacy Center we say it all the time, but we mean it: we could not do what we do without the support of our volunteer tutors! In 2023-24, TLC was able to serve 126 students in our tutoring program, the majority of which participated in our one-on-one tutoring program, where instruction is led by a volunteer tutor. We had 76 volunteer tutors participate in this program!
To get involved as a volunteer tutor at TLC, volunteers must be at least 15 years old, and they must complete our Volunteer Application. In addition to the volunteer application, volunteers must attend a New Volunteer Training day, provide a minimum of two positive references, and all volunteers over the age of 18 must submit to a background check.
Once a volunteer has completed all aspects of the application, training, and background check process, we will begin working to match them with a tutoring student. This process can take four to six weeks as we work to align volunteer/student schedules and ensure a good match between the volunteer and student.
Our volunteer tutoring requires a one-hour weekly commitment for the duration of the school year. TLC staff plan and prepare all lesson materials, so volunteers just have to show up and implement the lesson with the student, no pre-work necessary! In an effort to serve our ever-expanding waitlist, TLC encourages all who are interested in volunteering at TLC to reach out to annav@tetonliteracy.org – we would love to have you join our team!
“[TLC’s] volunteers are amazing, they have great people skills and ways to interact with the students”
– TLC Parent
TLC Tutoring by Numbers:
Over 182,000 minutes read in tutoring at TLC in 2023-24!
100% of students surveyed 3rd–12th grade reported that their confidence as a learner grew as a result of tutoring!
- TLC Parent Survey Responses:
100% of TLC parents reported seeing improvement in their child’s reading skills. - 100% of TLC parents reported seeing improvement in how often their child reads at home.
- 100% of parents saw improvement in their child’s attitude toward reading.
- 98% of parents reported an increase in their child’s confidence as a learner after participating in TLC programs.
