A local literacy group based in Collierville is training and certifying volunteers to serve adult students in one-on-one tutoring sessions throughout the Mid-South (including Shelby, Fayette and DeSoto counties). Meeting one to two hours each week, tutors help adult students with learning English.
The Collierville Literacy Council organizes the training, which is certified through ProLiteracy and held in Collierville. No teaching experience is required, and the certification is nationally recognized, meaning the tutors can also work in other states.
The next classes to train the tutors are:
•9:30 a.m.-3 p.m. March 10 for High School Equivalency (HSE) Adult Tutor Training
•9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. March 16 for English as a Second Language (ESL) Tutor Training
Both of these classes will be at the Collierville campus of the University of Memphis, 215 Poplar Ave., Collierville. For details or to register for tutor training, call (901) 854-0288 or email info@colliervilleliteracy.org. CLC also periodically trains tutors in basic literacy.
Besides the initial training for tutors, the CLC has quarterly Tutor Support Gatherings. There is a speaker to give instruction, the tutors are served lunch or dinner, and there is networking time so tutors can share successful strategies.
For adult students taking advantage of the training, there is a $25 registration fee that covers a year, from July through June. The only other cost the student might have would be to buy workbooks.
Students must make an appointment and take an assessment, and CLC then determines what kind of help is needed and tries to match them with a tutor. The first meeting with the tutor is at the CLC facility at 167 Washington St., Collierville, where the tutor receives help with materials and getting started. From then on, the tutor and student determine when and where to get together.
Tutors are asked to do assessments every three months and have the student come in for a formal assessment every six months. Students working on their HSE can take the Official Practice Test at the CLC facility (required by the state) before taking the state test to get their diploma.
For more information, visit colliervilleliteracy.org.
