Literacy Council in Sheboygan is in search of volunteer tutors. From helping people work toward citizenship to gaining employment, here’s the impact they can have.
SHEBOYGAN COUNTY - Carol Dussault has been a tutor at the Literacy Council in Sheboygan County for 10 years. The retired teacher said tutoring will be the last thing she gives up because she loves it so much.
“You learn about people, and they learn about you, and you become sort of a friendly ambassador for our culture, Sheboygan and Wisconsin,” she said. “And they become sort of a friendly ambassador for where they're from. You hear about their stories from when they were at home and how they got here.”
As an English language tutor, Dussault said working with different students is special because she may not have met them otherwise. She also thinks they are courageous and brave.
“I think it's difficult to move to another country, get used to another culture and learn another language. And English is not an easy language to learn,” Dussault said.
Many students are busy with kids, families and jobs but are still determined in their work at the Literacy Council, she said.
The Literacy Council, part of the Family Resource Center of Sheboygan County, is seeking English language tutors for adults ahead of its next round of training sessions later this month.
Before tutoring, volunteers complete training with the Literacy Council. Volunteers must have a high school diploma, but they don’t have to have a teaching background or know another language.
Those interested in volunteering must be willing to make a two- to three-hour weekly commitment for six months to build a tutor-student relationship.
Prospective students go through an evaluation process to assess their English-speaking skills and other needs.
After that, a tutor and student are matched based on preferences, such as gender or meeting location.
A Literacy Council staff member or evaluator then meets with the tutor and student for introductions and to distribute resources, like workbooks and textbooks.
An interpreter or a bilingual family member of the student may attend the first meeting as well.
The pair starts meeting individually, with periodic check-ins with the Literacy Council.
What the student learns is largely based on their personal goals.
“They might come in with a goal of being able to communicate with their doctor,” Literacy Council Coordinator Shannon Schuren said. “And then once they achieve that goal, then they might want to work towards their citizenship, or they might want to be able to communicate with their children's teachers.”
Students interested in preparing for the citizenship exam can take classes with a Literacy Council volunteer at Lakeshore Technical College twice a week.
The Literacy Council has students represented from about 20 countries and 16 languages, including Arabic, Chinese, French, Hmong, Rohingya, Russian and Ukranian.
The majority of students wish to learn English, but a small percentage who are native English speakers want to work on their GED or literacy skills, Schuren said.
The Literacy Council does not limit how long a student can participate. Some students have worked with tutors for years.
Tutor training sessions will be from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Jan. 24, 26 and 31 at LTC Sheboygan, 1320 Niagara Ave. Those interested in the training can complete an application at https://familyresourcesheboygan.org/volunteer-as-a-tutor/. Literacy Council staff will reach out with more information about the tutoring sessions.
Contact Alex Garner at 224-374-2332 or agarner@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @alexx_garner.
This article originally appeared on Sheboygan Press: Sheboygan Literacy Council tutors teach English as a second language
