Tutoring English to Advance Change (TEACH) /SCHOOL AND TUTORS ON WHEELS
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Mission Statement
Through free individualized English instruction, School and Tutors on Wheels dba Tutoring English to Advance Change (TEACH) works toward systemic change in society by empowering students to build their strengths and the effective use of their voice. TEACH works to ensure the inclusion of those who are typically excluded, under-represented or undervalued. TEACH exists, “That All May Be One”
About This Cause
TEACH offers free one-on-one tutoring to increase language proficiency and empower limited English-speaking immigrants who, due to language barriers and cultural influences, feel powerless to improve their quality of life. TEACH approaches English literacy not as an end, but a means to achieving life goals. Students set personal goals to guide instruction; through learning English in their pursuit, language proficiency naturally improves. TEACH’s approach is unique in several ways: A. The ability to read, write and speak English is one of two keys necessary to unlock full engagement in our society; second is the ability to bridge cultures. TEACH tutors are both educators and mentors, coaching students over obstacles as they learn to function effectively in a new culture. B. Unlike other tutoring organizations with time limits and with a primary focus on academic progress, TEACH encourages tutors and students to build long-term relationships, recognizing that strong bonds are crucial for bridging cultures and communities. C. TEACH emphasizes building practical language skills that address each learner’s day-to-day challenges, made more difficult by limited English. While increased proficiency is important, TEACH's ultimate objective is to teach students practical English skills and cultural knowledge needed to become self-reliant, active members of their community. The learning process is tailored to meet the individual needs of each student. D. To make learning meaningful, promote a sense of personal accomplishment, and build confidence, learners work with tutor/mentors to set personal goals. Instruction is then is guided by students' priorities. Progress toward these goals is much more meaningful to students than gains in test scores. E. TEACH is the only agency to offer free, one-on-one tutoring to prepare for the U.S. citizenship exam. 100% of TEACH citizenship students pass the test. F. To provide immediate and responsive support to tutors and students, staff are present at every site to assist in developing lesson plans and learning strategies and finding resources. This creates a program that is flexible, individualized and of consistently high quality. To fulfill its mission of promoting systemic change to address injustices confronting immigrants, TEACH has innovative programs to empower particularly vulnerable limited English-speaking immigrants with life challenges made more difficult due to language barriers. In partnership with social service organizations, TEACH offers the following programs: 1. Community-Based Health Literacy and Language Proficiency Building Immigrants with limited English proficiency are more likely to have low health literacy, resulting in worse overall health, more frequent and longer hospital stays and lower medication compliance. They incur four times higher healthcare costs and are less likely to seek healthcare. They have difficulty understanding information from health education programs. This program improves health equity among limited English-speaking immigrants through a culturally sensitive, individualized health literacy program incorporating English language learning into curriculum and learning objectives. The curriculum uses adult learning and English as a second language principles and strategies produces significant gains in both English literacy and health literacy. The program’s innovation lies in its three-tiered approach: 1) General Health Literacy/ESL Instruction: Learners participate in classes held in community engagement hubs (e.g. churches, cultural centers) that cover common health risks: a) Obesity b) Diabetes and c) Hypertension/Stroke, and d) Heart Disease. Also addressed are: e) Disabilities and special needs, and f) Quality of Life (issues impacting quality of life, e.g. stressors, unhealthy or unsafe living situation, including domestic abuse, and exercise). These last two are not covered in other health literacy curricula, but are very closely tied to health issues, and are even part of the broader healthcare system. 2) Individualized Health Literacy/ESL Tutoring: Trained volunteers provide one-on-one tutoring and mentoring support after class to ensure comprehension of material and individualize information to address each student’s health needs. They help learners prepare for healthcare visits by developing questions in advance and reviewing related vocabulary. 3) Applied Health Literacy/ESL Learning: Volunteers accompany students to medical appointments to ensure understanding of healthcare information and offer support. TEACH’s health literacy program is unlike any other: * The project is structured to provide individualized one-on-one tutoring/mentoring to participants so that information and associated vocabulary is reinforced, and that the tutor/mentor can be a resource for healthcare situations and issues as they arise. * The program is unique in that it broadens outcomes beyond short-term goals of increasing health literacy to include long-term program impact on such areas as quality of life, empowerment and active ownership of healthcare behaviors and decisions. TEACH believes these are the ultimate gauges of its effectiveness and its contribution to the community and future generations. * The recognition of disabilities as a healthcare issue creates a more holistic perspective of health to include any factors that influence well-being and quality of life. Similarly, the inclusion of safe home and work environments, with a pointed discussion of domestic violence and workplace discrimination, further expands the concept of health. Finally, self-care incorporates physical, emotional and spiritual aspects of a healthy life. 2. Worksite-based One-on-One English Literacy Tutoring and Cultural Mentoring TEACH applies its one-on-one tutoring/mentoring model in the workplace setting, a program unique to TEACH; typically, workplace ESL instruction is done in classes. Since one-on-one tutoring is shown to accelerate learning by 25% - 30%, individual English language tutoring in the workplace will more quickly enhance their communication skills on the job. The program objective is to increase English literacy to enhance job performance, as well as improving the employees’ ability to interact effectively at work and in their personal lives. Benefits to students are greater job satisfaction, longer tenure, greater job opportunities, wage increases, greater comfort level, effectiveness and self-reliance in communication with work colleagues and community members. Benefits to the employer come through employee’s' increased literacy level by improving productivity, enhancing employees’ ability to contribute at work, reducing turn-over, and creating a more productive and profitable work environment. This program is customized to each workplace using input from supervisors as well as employees. 3. One-on-one tutoring and cultural mentoring to limited English proficiency survivors of domestic violence Immigrant women are at high risk for domestic violence. Immigrant women often feel trapped in abusive relationships because of immigration laws, language barriers, cultural influences, social isolation, and lack of financial resources. Limited English proficiency raises obstacles due to language barriers that create more isolation, limit victims’ knowledge of services, curtail their ability to secure gainful employment and be self-sufficient enough to escape abuse, and make it difficult to develop support networks independent of the abuser. Abusers have additional power over their victims by: a. preventing the victim from learning English or communicating with friends, family or others from their home countries, b. threatening deportation or withdrawal of petitions for legal status, c. destroying critical legal documents such as passports, resident cards, health insurance or driver’s licenses, d. withdrawing or not filing papers for residency, e. threatening that the victim will lose their citizenship or residency if they report the violence, f. getting the victim fired from their job or calling employers and falsely reporting that the victim is undocumented, and g. threatening to hurt children or take them away if the police are contacted. TEACH collaborates with domestic violence prevention agencies to provide one-on-one tutoring and mentoring to these victims. TEACH’s tutoring is focused on gaining language skills, understanding U.S. cultural practices, customs and conventions and navigating systems to empower these women to obtain gainful employment, advocate for themselves and their families, and become self-reliant. This program was developed to give victims enough mastery of English to 1) access available services, 2) complete job applications, write resumes, communicate effectively in an interview, 3) develop a support network independent of the abuser, 4) obtain a driver’s license or credit card, 5) achieve personal goals requiring knowledge of English. The program objective is to increase the learner’s feeling of empowerment and control over her life and provide the language skills and cultural knowledge to improve her quality of life and that of her children, a new paradigm to measure impact of increasing English proficiency among immigrant survivors of domestic violence. 4. Improving language proficiency of limited English-speaking parents of children with disabilities Limited English-speaking parents of children with disabilities often have difficulty accessing services for their children due to language barriers. Without a functional command of English, they cannot effectively advocate for their children, be an active partner with schools to develop their children's Individual Education Plan (IEP) or understand their children's rights. TEACH works with agencies serving children with disabilities and their families to provide English literacy tutoring focused on building language skills these parents need to communicate with schools, doctors and community resources regarding their children's needs and advocate for their best interests.