ServiceLearning Tutoring of ELLs: Growth and Professional Development through a UniversityCommunity

1
Service-Learning Tutoring of ELLs Growth and
Professional Development through a
University-Community Partnership

• Paul H. Matthews, Ph.D.pmatthew_at_uga.edu
• Georgia TESOL Annual Conference, February 25, 2006

2
What is Service-Learning?

• In a service-learning experience, students learn
  not only about social issues, but also how to
  apply the new knowledge to action that addresses
  real problems in their own communities Students
  receive academic credit for demonstrated
  knowledge in connecting their service experience
  with course content.(Torres Sinton, 2000)

3
Service-Learning

• Moves beyond community service, though includes
  service
• Involves structured reflection to analyze the
  experience and relate it to academic knowledge
• Should be based on needs of the community

4
Service-Learning

• Has been shown to have a positive effect on
  university students growth, commitment to
  service, moral development, interpersonal
  development, communication skills, and other
  areas
• Has been shown to reduce stereotypes, enhance
  academic learning, and improve problem-solving
  skills, among other benefits
• (Eyler, Giles, Stenson, Gray, 2001)

5
UGA Service-Learning Tutoring

• Various initiatives that involve UGA community
  with the Latino community
• New office of service-learning at UGA
• CLASE supporting community-based tutoring
  initiatives at three local venues
• Convent at Latino trailer park
• Library outreach branch at same trailer park
• Boys/Girls Club in Latino duplex community

6
About the Context

• UGA students tutoring since 2003
• Tutoring takes place M-Th afternoons
• 1 or more times/week
• Basic orientation, background checks
• Work with Latino students K-5, 6-12, and K-8,
  different levels of English proficiency
• Help with homework, do literacy support (L1, L2),
  play games, etc.

7
About the Context

• Graduate students coordinate, publicize, recruit,
  train and tutor
• Undergraduate student worker at some venues for
  admin. Support
• Community program staff also provide oversight,
  set local rules, provide location and some
  materials

8
About the Tutors

• Mostly undergraduates
• White, Black, Asian and Latino
• Over 100 student volunteers, not just from
  College of Education

• Arts Sciences
• Business
• Engineering
• Journalism
• Pharmacy
• Public International Affairs

9
About the Course

• Prior independent study format, now
  service-learning tutoring course
• About 15-20 students/semester
• Weekly or bimonthly class meetings focused on
  literacy instruction, teaching skills, tutoring
  theory, reflection on experiences
• Some readings, e.g. SLA, tutoring
• Written reflective journaling

10
About the Data Sources

• For this presentation data were written
  reflections from student participants Fall 2005
  Spring 2006, and end-of-course focal group
  discussions, Fall 2005

• Prompts re program improvement, meaningful
  events, learning outcomes for tutors and tutees,
  impact of participation on tutors

11
Impact

• Based on prior research on service-learning,
  focused thematic analysis on
• students growth (compassion, growth,
  relationships)
• reduction of stereotypes
• commitment to service
• enhancement of academic learning (pedagogical
  knowledge, tutoring skills, and extension of
  learning to authentic contexts)

12
Compassion and Personal Growth

• Brooke I have gained so much appreciation for
  the Latino community and what they are trying to
  do for their children. They have also generally
  raised my level of compassion.
• Christi My love for the Hispanic community has
  also grown. From times like the fiesta that I
  stayed for to other times when I talked to
  parents, my heart has opened up so much to these
  wonderful people I still cringe when I think
  about the cruel laws being discussed that are
  designed to harm these children and know that it
  is so important to put every effort into stopping
  them.

13
Compassion and Personal Growth

• Brannon Tutoring has exceeded my
  anticipations and opened my eyes to a whole
  different world.
• Katie The opportunity to go to the program
  every day has been humbling and has made me put
  my life in perspective and be thankful for the
  opportunities I have been given, politically,
  legally, and educationally.

14
Compassion and Personal Growth

• India The students bring structure into my
  schedule, and help me to see that I am privileged
  to have the resources that I am able to utilize
  daily.
• Chanelle The kids have helped me remember what
  it feels like to be frustrated and confused over
  a subject, something I havent felt in a very
  long time!
• India I was a little skeptical at first about
  the children looking up to me as an adult, but it
  worked out fine.

15
Growth and Personal Relationships

• Christi I have become very close to H., A. and
  some of the other children. Ive learned that by
  really getting to know the children, Ive figured
  out different ways to get their interest and make
  sure theyre having more fun.
• Kenny Tutoring has become something more than
  simple help with homework. I have really gotten
  to know the children on a more personal level and
  have come to form an attachment to most of them.

16
Growth and Personal Relationships

• Pia I feel I've been successful in tutoring
  because I've developed a relationship with this
  girl. When I first started tutoring last
  semester, A. would rarely even talk to me. She
  was actually kind of rude, and whenever I
  approached her to help her with her HW, she
  wouldn't be very friendly. I think with
  persistence, I've become more than just a tutor
  with her. Whenever I arrive at program, she
  always greets me, and if she doesn't have a tutor
  with her already, she asks for me to help her.
  She's started to trust me.

17
Growth and Personal Relationships

• Katie Ive had the opportunity to form close
  relationships with many of the kids. After a
  couple of months of knowing them, they have
  really felt as though they could open up to me.
• Jennifer L. has decided that he and I are going
  to be great friends and work together each week.
  That's fine by me! I know he's self-conscious
  about his limitations-- especially when there are
  other students in the room, but I'm hoping as we
  become better friends (as he says), that he'll
  be more comfortable with trying to read and write
  rather than giving up or saying he doesn't know
  how.

18
Growth and Personal Relationships

• Preya I agree when it comes to creating that
  bond with the child which I think I have done
  pretty well in because thats important to me.
• Brooke This past semester has given me the
  amazing opportunity to expand my cultural and
  linguistic experiences. I have also learned to
  appreciate and respect the culture and values of
  the Latino community. This group of people is
  easy to stereotype, and I am so glad that I can
  now be one more person to stand up for them.

19
Stereotype Reduction

• Kelli Before I began, I was one of those who
  stereotyped Hispanic students as ones who were
  not willing to learn and lack any future goals
  and ambitions. My attitude has changed, however,
  and I now believe that just because an
  impoverished community does not have the most
  advanced tools (books, supplies, technology,
  etc.), there are several Hispanic students who
  have dreams of becoming successful and productive
  citizens when they grow up.

20
Stereotype Reduction

• Christi Upon first coming into the program, I
  had some doubts on whether I would be able to
  connect with the kids and was extremely concerned
  with how different their lives probably are than
  mine was as a child The more and more I worked
  with the kids, the more I felt like a part of
  their world. What they had/were lacking was
  rarely (if ever) talked about, and I truly forgot
  it was even an issue. While the children may not
  have been wearing Limited Too, they were dressed
  in nice clothing and had high quality book bags.
  They definitely acted like any other kids Ive
  ever babysat or tutored.

21
Stereotype Reduction

• Ana I went into this program with many
  preconceived notions about how this community
  would appear and operate. The stereotypes that
  Americans have about Mexican immigrants are not
  necessary to put in writing, but I believe that
  they are mostly negative and very widespread.
  Being a part of this community, and seeing what
  positive things go on has really opened my eyes
  and taught me many things. Watching the children
  and listening to their stories really shows how
  much this culture values family. I thought that
  the children would be neglected and starved for
  attention, but in reality the parents are very
  involved with the childrens lives.

22
Stereotype Reduction

• Brannon Although these children may lack in
  areas because of the language barrier, I have
  realized that they are really just like other
  kids. Some are really smart and can do their math
  homework in a snap others have more trouble.
  This has changed my previous views that all these
  children had a lot of trouble and were not as
  smart as children who are not as underprivileged
  as them. In fact, the Spanish children that do
  not have as much trouble are probably smarter
  than the regular children because they have not
  had to overcome the language barrier.

23
Commitment to Service

• Ana It is so rewarding when C. finally
  understands a concept. His eyes light up and you
  can see the pride in his expression. It is those
  types of moments that make this tutoring
  experience worth-while. It may sound cliché, but
  these children really are the future of America.
  If we help these children now, they will benefit
  our country, and themselves, even more in the
  years to come.

24
Commitment to Service

• Chanelle One result of my tutoring, is in
  terms of my new-found desire to participate in
  community service. This is undoubtedly the most
  pronounced, direct result of my tutoring. I
  guess I never actually stepped out of my little
  suburban Atlantan box and intimately known anyone
  dissimilar. Through Oasis I have gotten to know
  the kids, seen where some of them live and
  recognize the plights of some of the children,
  and it makes me want to help people, especially
  those less fortunate than they.

25
Pedagogical Knowledge Skills

• Christi While I once thought that I could never
  be a teacher, my mind has definitely changed over
  this semester. I realize the struggles and have
  felt the frustrations, but I have also
  experienced the rewards.

26
Pedagogical Knowledge Skills

• Chanelle Its a strange sentence, but really,
  working with the kids has taught me to teach, and
  Ive learned how kids learn again.
• Christi The more I tried to help the children,
  the more I realized the benefits of having a
  background in education. For so many skills, I
  cant even remember how I learned to do themit
  just comes naturally. I cant explain the natural
  ability to a child who doesnt understand what
  Im doing.

27
Pedagogical Knowledge Skills

• Ana To be honest, I was very intimidated in the
  beginning of the semester. I have never thought
  of myself as someone who is good with children,
  and I have absolutely no experience with
  teaching. However, I quickly learned that those
  things were not the most important I learned
  that this program is not about being the best
  motherly figure, or the best teacher. It is
  about simply spending time with the children, and
  the learning will fall into place.
• Brannon The part of patience I had never had to
  deal with before this was when trying to explain
  a concept to a child and they do not understand
  it. Trying to think of another way to explain it
  became frustrating sometimes.

28
Pedagogical Knowledge Skills

• India Another important thing that I learned in
  tutoring at program is that not all students
  understand what they are reading because they are
  not familiar with what is asked in the problem
  That was a major eye opener for me. It made me
  realize that so many students are in the same
  position, and that people just need to take the
  time out to really help them and they will do
  better. I think things of that nature are what we
  as native speakers take for granted, and do not
  realize that there are things that cause trouble
  for the students.

29
Pedagogical Knowledge Skills

• Desiree It is hard to remember what it was like
  to not be able to read. To me, the easiest thing
  is to have them sound out the word, but there is
  much more than that. I always ask the child, once
  they have read the word, or I have helped them
  with it, if they know what the word means. Most
  of the time they will say yes, and I will have to
  make sure they really do, and then they give me
  the life connection.

30
Applying Tutoring Theory

• Kelli There were times during the semester
  where giving students answers felt like the
  simplest way to help a student, but giving
  answers wouldnt help the students at all.
• Kenny There is more to tutoring than just
  questions and answers. There is a whole thought
  process and a certain way of learning mixed with
  many different variables that goes into
  tutoringespecially with ESL students. As a
  tutor, there were many times when I just wanted
  to tell the student that answer or just say the
  word that they could not pronounce. However, the
  child would never learn unless he or she found it
  out on their own.

31
Applying Tutoring Theory

• Leo I used different scaffolding strategies
  to reinforce my tutees independence Every
  time we did reading activities, I tried to relate
  those texts to some stories from their cultural
  background (accessing prior knowledge).

32
Applying Tutoring Theory

• Katie The main way I have developed as a tutor
  was to begin to recognize patterns in the
  childrens homework and therefore have a better
  directive to go towards when begging them to do
  their homework. That also allowed for me to
  recognize which areas the different kids
  specifically needed to work on I could pick up
  on the language stages that we discussed in class
  and saw as they went from the silent stage, to
  where they would test out a few words, and to
  where they could have a conversation.

33
Applying Tutoring Theory

• Chanelle In tutoring, the main goal is to be a
  supporter to the teacher(s) and help instill any
  problematic ideas and concepts in the tutee to
  promote better understanding While in the
  process of tutoring, I have shared some tips that
  have helped me in school, and I have, of course,
  helped the kids with problemsusually math!
• Desiree A speakers presentation on
  supporting literacy covered many things that I am
  already doing with D. to help her become a better
  reader, but also provided some new insights and
  techniques that I will start to use with her.

34
Extending Academic Learning

• Holly One of the most important things that I
  learned was how to teach someone else to read.
  Most of us have grown up reading with our parents
  and can look back to the ways that we learned to
  read, but when we actually try to teach someone,
  we enter a whole new ballgame.

• Chanelle Ive learned the difficulties faced
  by teachers I have seen, firsthand, how
  difficult it is to even quiz a student on simple
  addition problems when the quizzer doesnt even
  know how to relay that he/she wants the student
  to give the answer.

35
Extending Academic Learning

• Chanelle The language barrier Ive abstractly
  heard so much about has become an almost tangible
  issue Problems that were once hypothetical have
  come alive in front of my eyes.
• Holly In fact, I even went home and did some
  research on autism so that I would better
  understand what L. goes through on a daily basis.

36
Extending Academic Learning

• Katie I have also attended events tied to the
  tutoring organizations but not directly related
  that have taught me so much about the Latino
  culture I also went to a couple of panels on
  immigration in Atlanta and in Athens, and my eyes
  were opened at the range of opinions and
  potential laws that relate to the very people
  that we work with.
• Kelli Participation shows Athens, not UGA.

37
Moving Forward

• Program evaluation including feedback from
  parents, program staff, and tutees
• Additional semesters of tutor feedback and
  reflection
• Possible future goals for stronger linkage with
  school district and schools