CAROL’S SUMMARY:
Since February, Brevard Public Schools in Rockledge, Florida has offered two online evening tutoring sessions four days a week for Kennedy Middle School students. The hour-long sessions with teachers from Kennedy Middle offer extra help in math, science, language arts and Spanish. Officials say they are so impressed with the program, they want to expand it countywide.
According to the Florida Today article below, “Previously, about 10 percent of the school’s more than 700 students attended traditional tutoring sessions held after school on campus. About 37 percent of the school’s students have taken part in the online tutoring.†Developed and organized by Kennedy teacher Amanda Van Ess, she says “It brings out the students who are afraid to ask questions in the classroom. The kids are really loving the interaction not only with their teacher, but also with their peers. It allows them to learn in a way they are comfortable, using the computer.”
Students aren’t the only benefactors. The online tutoring program gives parents a break from costly tutoring programs and scheduling/transportation conflicts with work. Teachers involved in the program also enjoy the convenience of working from home instead of arriving at school early and/or leaving late.
Tutoring is an integral part of education and in order to encourage, inspire and motivate students to succeed in difficult subjects, coaching skills are a must. LifeBound trains educators, administrator and parents on academic coaching skills such as asking powerful questions. To learn more about how LifeBound’s academic coaches training can benefit you in your role as a tutor visit www.lifebound.com or email contact@lifebound.com.
ARTICLE:
Brevard school offers new take on tutoring
More students participating in online program vs. traditional
BY MICHELLE SPITZER
FLORIDA TODAY
May 6, 2010
ROCKLEDGE — Once a week at 7 p.m., Carolyn Phillips, a Kennedy Middle eighth-grader, logs on to her home computer, and her Spanish teacher’s face pops up on the screen.
“How many of you remember what tener means?” Leonardo Nicaragua asks Carolyn and about a dozen of her classmates who participate in an after-school online tutoring session.
Some students use microphones attached to their computers to answer their teacher. Carolyn types the correct response “to have,” which pops up on the screen for everyone in the session to see.
“This is much more fun than being at school, because I’m home, and I can take breaks or get a snack,” the 14-year-old said while her 2-year-old sister played behind her and her mom peeked in from time to time.
To view this entire article visit www.floridatoday.com
