Please register here to join us for one of our monthly virtual information sessions. We also encourage you to review our annual report and visit our website.
After participating in a mandatory information session, appropriate candidates will be invited to complete either our ESOL or Basic Literacy tutor training. Tutors must also complete a formal application and sign an agreement form.
Students and tutors should plan to meet every week for 2 hours. Choosing a consistent day/time is recommended. However, it is sometimes important to plan ahead and reschedule individual sessions as needed (ex: vacation).
We expect you and your student(s) to meet for a minimum of 12 months, although you may continue meeting longer than this. You and your student also have the option of being rematched should your schedules change. Our program’s goal is for students, on average, to receive 45 hours of educational instruction/year.
On a monthly basis, our program will contact you via email to request the number of hours you met with your student/s. You are required to report to us within 10 days so that we can relay this information to our parent organization. This data is essential to our funding.
Additionally, it is highly recommended you participate in ongoing professional development activities throughout the year. We will host some of these and also recommend free webinars/workshops or asynchronous training.
April-June each year, your student/s will be required to complete a standardized English assessment with us. We expect you to partner with us to ensure they meet this requirement.
There are always students in need, and any delays in matching are not related to a lack of need. Delays in matching are typically related to how a tutor’s scheduling availability compares to the availability of students. Ex: tutor is only available to meet mornings, but current students waiting to be matched are only available nights.
The range of English language skills among our ESOL students varies. Most students can express themselves simply and with grammatical errors. Many students can manage everyday situations, but do not know enough English to advance at work. Some students can understand and read well in English, but are unable to hold a meaningful conversation.
As for literacy, we teach from non-reader to pre-GED. Some of our students don’t know the alphabet (possibly in any language). Others can read news articles with ease, but may struggle to write coherently.
Tutors and students are expected to meet in a public place, such as the library, a coffee shop, or any other convenient and public location in the community. Info for booking study rooms at WPL: https://mywpl.org/community-spaces
Virtual tutoring is also an option. Please note we are unable to provide paid Zoom links for you to use.
The program coordinator will email you on a monthly basis to request your tutoring hours and share resources and events such as tutor meet-ups. We are available by email, phone and drop-in for anything you may need.
Scheduled in-person (or Zoom) meetings are ideal for brainstorming lesson plans or troubleshooting any student issues that may arise during the course of tutoring.
Like most adults, your student will likely have urgent needs above and beyond English language learning: securing employment, navigating the American healthcare system, and obtaining US citizenship. It is not your responsibility to address these other needs, but you can incorporate them into your English lessons (ex: practicing job interview questions, reading about US history/civics).
If needed, the Worcester Library has a full-time social worker with office hours and hosts routine immigration support clinics as well.
We will provide you with access to paid subscriptions, including News For You, Burlington English, and Ellii. Additional recommended resources can be found here. Our office has a lending library and can help you identify teaching materials. The first floor of the Worcester Public Library also has an ESL lending library.
In our experience, students are typically not responsive to emails. We recommend using text messages or WhatsApp to communicate.
WhatsApp is a very popular messaging app used among international student populations; it is free and secure. It allows messages to be translated easily and allows voice memos to be sent as well.
Every donation helps sustain our free English language classes and personalized tutoring services, directly supporting immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers, and adult learners across Greater Worcester as they build language skills, confidence, and opportunities for a brighter future.
