Tuesday, October 25, 2016

the little tutoring job...

..on Tuesday mornings has two more weeks, then it's over until spring. I am by no means certain that the little bit of one-on-one reading these kids are getting has lasting benefit. I do hope that my time investment is meaningful, but not sure it is really helpful.

My coworker was asking me this morning after I returned to work 'how is it going?' And I have to admit I am not sure. I would really be interested in how the person who runs the program does the  evaluating to determine degree  of improvement following eight weeks of daily reading with an adult. I think there is some process where the kids are shown line drawings, like cartoons, of various objects and asked to  name the picture. Then maybe do the same activity after the eight week sessions to determine if their vocabulary shows any change.

When I started, one of the little boys was practically non -verbal. And now he can be much more interactive. Certainly not what I would classify as 'chatty', but willing to respond to my questions about items we see in the books, as well as naming colors. He is likely ESOL, and might only hear Spanish at home, so I can only imagine what a challenge it is for the classroom teacher to instruct and communicate with him. He has improved with sociability whether he has improved his vocabulary or not.

I was recently listening to public radio, my primary source for news, and heard that people who take the citizenship test are expected to have English skills. I am curious to know if they are required to actually take the test written in English? Or in an effort to be 'inclusive', the test can be requested in any language from any where on the planet. I'm a big proponent of literacy, and think reading/speaking is vital to success in life, but maybe it is not necessary to speak 'American' to get ahead?

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