“Tutoring program begins Monday” plus 2 more

Tutoring program begins Monday
Free tutoring available for qualified students in Knox County
Tutoring company begins expansion

Posted: 21 Sep 2010 08:42 AM PDT

Full Committed Ministry, through its Community Outreach Program, is beginning a tutoring program Sept. 6.

Ten children will be selected for each of the four categories: K-2nd grade, 3rd-4th grades; 5th-6th grades and 7th-8th grades.

Class times and days vary, depending on the grade of the student. Fridays are set aside for extra help, absentees and special testing.

"Because our aim is to mentor the leaders of tomorrow the criteria for selection of the children will be left to the discretion of the staff," program director Tina Ratliff Boley said. "The children must be manageable, willing to learn and willing to excel.

"We prefer students whose parents take an active interest in their child's education."

There is a minimal fee for the tutoring to cover the cost of supplies and necessities, Boley said.

Space is limited and enrollment is on a first-come, first-serve basis.

For more information, call Boley at 750-1378.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.

Free tutoring available for qualified students in Knox County

Posted: 20 Sep 2010 09:00 PM PDT

Of the 2,606 Knox County students who were eligible for free tutoring during the 2008-09 school year, only 148 participated.

"We'd really like to see as many students take advantage of this as possible," said Knox County Schools Title I Supervisor Dr. Stephen Wright, referring to those who qualify for free tutoring this year under the Supplemental Educational Services provision of the federal No Child Left Behind Act. "This is one of those things that is able to bring really high quality tutoring to students at no cost to (the parents)."

In order to qualify for free tutoring, a student must be in attendance at one of the 12 Knox County schools on the NCLB High Priority list for the current school year and must currently receive free or reduced-price lunch. Schools become listed as High Priority if they fail to achieve the gains in test scores set forth by the state Department of Education from year to year.

Parents of qualifying students should already have received a packet with an application in the mail from the Knox County Title I office. And, although the packet lists an Oct. 1 deadline for registration, Wright says that isn't quite as firm as it sounds.

"We don't turn anyone down who's eligible," said Wright. "If they apply in April, we'll get them started in April." However, despite the flexible application process, parents are encouraged to apply as soon as possible since the longer a student attends tutoring, the more benefits they can reap.

Once parents have turned the application in to their child's school office and the Knox County Title I office has approved it, they can nail down the specifics of the tutoring sessions directly with their service provider.

Approved tutoring providers include such organizations as Sylvan Learning Center, the Boys and Girls Club of East Tennessee and A to Z In-Home Tutoring. And, if parents missed out on the SES provider meet-and-greet fair Thursday, Wright says they will have another opportunity to talk with the providers. "We're hoping to have another fair in the spring, around the start of the second semester," Wright said.

If parents have any questions or concerns, they are encouraged to call Dr. Wright at 865-594-1806.

General information on the federal NCLB programs can be found at the Tennessee Department of Education website, www.tn.gov/education/.

Features writer Cortney Newell may be contacted at 865-342-6369.

Tutoring company begins expansion

Posted: 20 Sep 2010 11:35 PM PDT

Submitted photo. Pictured above are some of the tutors that work for Dallas Peer Tutors. The organization, which was co-founded by Ian Anderson, a senior at Carroll High School � is in more than 25 schools in the Metroplex.

Ian Anderson wants to change the education system in America. Instead of just talking about it, the Carroll High School senior has launched a Metroplex-wide peer tutoring service.

�I think there are so many problems with education,� Anderson said. �So many students fall through the cracks and don�t get the chances they should get. They are not connecting with the information for some reason, and I want to do my part to make sure that doesn�t happen.�

Anderson is one of the co-founders of Dallas Peer Tutors, which officially launched Monday.

The idea was born in 2006 when Vic Ramon, then a senior at Highland Park High School, started Highland Park Tutors. After speaking with Ramon, Anderson started Carroll Tutors last year. They are now taking the service to more than 25 schools across North Texas, with the possibility of additional expansion. As of now, high schools in The Colony, Lewisville, Flower Mound, Carrollton, Coppell, Plano, Allen and Frisco are all taking part in the program.

�We�re excited to bring peer-tutoring to more communities � it�s a truly unique and valuable addition to education,� Ramon said in a press release. �It�s just one of those things that should exist, and we just happen to be the people doing it.�

The program features peer tutors at each of the schools that are serviced. Anderson said one of the advantages of this system is that the tutors are in the same classes as the clients, meaning that they are both familiar with the teachers and the material.

�This program works,� he said. �It is students teaching students. The tutors know how to get an �A� in the class, and that is taught to the client. Once we got our feet underneath us at Carroll, we realized the potential in this business. We saw expansion potential and saw that we had something incredibly powerful.�

Anderson and Ramon spent this past summer interviewing and hiring more than 200 tutors. Tutoring is available for almost all classes, from basic classes such as geometry and Texas history, to advanced college-level classes such as calculus. Scheduling an appointment is as simple as visiting the company�s website and selecting a subject, as well as a date and time for the tutoring.

�It is very simple to book a tutor,� Anderson said. �Once a client logs on to the website and submits a session, it goes to a giant pool of tutors who decide which tutor will handle that appointment. The tutoring happens in the home of the client or another predetermined location. Sessions last about an hour, but double sessions can also be booked.�

The rates for Dallas Peer Tutors are $35 an hour for a one-on-one session, with the price going down to $30 if two or more people will receive tutoring. This is cheaper than some other tutoring companies, which can charge $50 or more per hour and require the purchase of a minimum number of hours. At Dallas Peer Tutors, there is no minimum amount of hours that must be purchased.

�It is not a package deal where you have to buy a certain amount of hours,� Anderson said. �We are also not selling you our curriculum; we are just going over what they are teaching you in school.�

When it comes to changing education in America, this is just the first step for Anderson. After graduation from Carroll, Anderson said he hopes to have a career as an education reform lobbyist.

�I want to make education something that works for everyone, not just some people,� he said. �It seems that each school almost operates as a business, and I don�t think that should happen. A school shouldn�t be so much like a business that students slip through the cracks and no one notices.�

For information or to schedule an appointment, visit www.dallaspeertutors.com.

The following are comments from the readers.
In no way do they represent the view of Starlocalnews.com

You must register with a valid email to post comments.
Only your Member ID will be posted with the comments.

Registered users sign in here:

Tutoring

Tuesday, September 21, 2010