Abstract

This effective practice, taken from a study of 61 partnerships, provides a summary of methods that contributed to the success of America Reads tutoring alliances.  Excerpted from the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory's 1999 publication, So That Every Child Can Read...America Reads Community Tutoring Partnerships.

Back to top

Issue

Children who are at risk of difficulty in learning to read have much to gain from tutoring. While tutors compliment and support the instruction provided by teachers and reading specialists, they also give children the intangible gifts of an adult's attention and concern.

Back to top

Action

The following practices that contributed to the success of America Reads are applicable to any volunteer reading tutoring program.

The tutoring program partnership

Partnerships work well if they include the following:

• A clear definition of the roles, responsibilities, and accountability of partners
• Active partner participation and frequent communication 
• A diverse knowledge base among partners
• A plan for sustainability and capacity building
• An effective steering committee
• A proactive, well-qualified program director
• Strong school and teacher commitment
• Effective and sustainable tutor recruitment
• Access to groups of tutors via universities, civic organizations, and businesses

Operational norms

For success, a tutoring program needs: 

• A coordinator who ideally is a reading specialist or education professional
• Consistent onsite supervision of tutors
• Recruitment, training, and placement of tutors early in the school year
• Orientation and training programs for parents to enable them to support tutoring efforts
• Systematic record keeping of tutoring session plans and student assessments
• Tutoring sessions that support district curriculum and classroom instruction
• Tutor commitment

Tutor training

Training efforts are maximized when:

• Training is based on a clearly defined and documented, research-based training model
• Trainers receive training
• Feedback from tutors is used to modify the training curriculum 
• Training accommodates tutors' varying expertise, learning styles, and schedules
• Preservice training covers substantive content

Ongoing training and onsite support exists, such as:

• Tutor consultations with a seasoned tutor, reading specialist, or teacher
• Observation, feedback, and positive reinforcement of tutor performance
• Support and guidance for tutoring session planning
• Recognition and appreciation of tutors

High quality materials

Successful programs have developed or provided: 

• A program-specific handbook and resource library for tutors
• A tutor-training manual
• A rich selection of children's books and consumable materials
• Materials that support school standards
• Planning, record-keeping, and assessment tools 

Back to top

Context

Information about the 61 partnerships came from four primary sources: partnerships' program abstracts; summaries of effective and promising practices in tutor training reported to the regional educational laboratories; findings of expert review panels at the laboratories and partnerships' final reports. In examining the partnership's reports on effective practices, the expert panels looked for evidence of success, program quality, educational significance, and replicability. Panel members included school and community-based educational professionals, reading experts, and professional staff of the educational laboratories.

Back to top

Citation

Potter, Jana, Judy Blankenship, and Laura Carlsmith. "A Review of Effective and Promising Practices in Volunteer Reading Tutoring Programs." So That Every Child Can Read... America Reads Community Tutoring Partnerships. Portland, Oregon: Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, 1999.

Back to top

Posted On

Back to top

For More Information

Back to top

Resources

This is a record of findings by an expert panel reviewing the 61 tutoring partnerships, as found in Effective and Promising Practices of 61 America Reads Partnerships, published by the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory.

Source Documents

Related Practices

Back to top

Related sites

• Login or register to post comments
• 
• Print-friendly page
• Send to friend