Become a Tutor

Thank you for your interest in becoming a tutor for the Ruth G. Hardman Adult Literacy Service.  The Library's Adult Literacy Service offers one-on-one tutoring to adults and young adults (16+) who wish to improve their reading and writing skills.  Our tutors come from all walks of life. We see retired teachers, recent college graduates, stay-at-home parents, learners, full-time employees, etc. The one thing they have in common is the desire to help someone improve their reading and/or English skills. 

You can sign up now for our next tutor training by registering online by clicking the link below:  

ONLINE TUTOR REGISTRATION FORM

For more information call the literacy office at 918.549.7400. 

Feeling intimidated? Don't! We frequently have potential tutors ask if we can use people who have never taught before, or people who don't speak Spanish, and the answer is always of course we can! What we need from our tutors is patience, and a willingness to learn alongside your student. In addition to that, we do ask that our tutors fulfill these more specific requirements:

Satisfactorily complete our free 6-hour tutor training, or a 10-component online training.  Tutors are required to complete a core 10-hour training to become certified. This training will help you understand how best to work with your student, and will show you the resources we have available for you and your student to use. See the current workshop schedule for more details.

Commit to tutor for a minimum of one year.  We don't expect you to meet once a week without fail for 52 weeks--life happens, and everybody has things come up.  However, working one-on-one takes trust and understanding, which take time to develop.  For someone learning to read, having to switch tutors often can be discouraging, even overwhelming.  Adult learners need a partner who is willing to stick with them.

Devote 1 or more hours per week to tutoring.  We will match you with a student who can meet at the same general time and place as you, and then allow the two of you to work out the details. Pairs usually meet at a library, but other public places are always an option. Our goal is for you and your student to be comfortable.

Be 18 years or older and a high school graduate or GED recipient.

Read and write at an 8th grade level.

Pass a criminal history background check.

2023 Training Schedule

This is the schedule for our in-person tutor training, taking place at 2901 S Harvard in Tulsa. For information on our online training, please contact us at 918-549-7400 or literacy@tulsalibrary.org

NOTE: You must complete both Class 1 and Class 2 before beginning to tutor.

January 2023

Class 1: Tuesday, January 10, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Class 2: Thursday, January 12, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

February 2023

Class 1: Saturday, February 4, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Class 2: Saturday, February 11, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

March 2023

Class 1: Tuesday, March 21, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Class 2: Thursday, March 23, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

April 2023

Class 1: Saturday, April 15, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Class 2: Saturday, April 22, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

May 2023

Class 1: Tuesday, May 9, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Class 2: Thursday, May 11, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

June 2023

Class 1: Saturday, June 3, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Class 2: Saturday, June 10, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

July 2023

Class 1: Tuesday, July 11, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Class 2: Thursday, July 13, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

August 2023

Class 1: Saturday, August 5, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Class 2: Saturday, August 12, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

September 2023

Class 1: Tuesday, September 19, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Class 2: Thursday, September 21, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

October 2023

Class 1: Saturday, October 7, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Class 2: Saturday, October 14, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

November 2023

Class 1: Tuesday, November 14, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Class 2: Thursday, November 16, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Responding to an unmet community need, the Tulsa City-County Library established its Adult Literacy Service in 1977. Beginning with only a handful of tutors and students, the program has grown and now serves over 200 adult learners each year.

Most tutors meet with students who have contacted us and who are living in the community. These students are managing, but feel the need to improve their reading and/or English skills.

Adult learners seek our services for a variety of reasons. There is no “typical” student, but these descriptions will give you an idea of the types of learners we serve:

Beginning Basic Literacy: Beginning basic literacy students may struggle to read a simple children’s story, understand medicine labels, or fill out a job application. These learners typically need help with beginning phonics, frequently used words, and comprehension skills.

Advanced Basic Literacy: An advanced basic literacy student may read at a 4th - 6th grade level, but struggle to break down longer words and understand longer texts. Spelling and writing are often challenging for these learners as well. Vocabulary development, guided writing, and more complex comprehension strategies are generally the areas of focus for these students. These learners may be working toward obtaining their GED or enrolling in vocational or college courses.

English as a Second Language: These students have either immigrated to this area or are here temporarily before returning to their native countries. They want to speak and understand English with greater confidence and ease. Tutors often focus on conversation for meaning, pronunciation, vocabulary development and writing with ESL learners.

Developmentally Disabled: Some of our students have limited cognitive abilities. These students often have caregivers and caseworkers who can assist with scheduling and transportation. They most often need to work on survival words and life skills.

Adjudicated Juveniles or Adults: We occasionally have students referred to us by their parole officers. These are not hardened criminals, but individuals who, with better literacy skills, might have avoided incarceration.

Physically Handicapped: These are students with various physical challenges such as: cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, or cystic fibrosis. They are usually wheelchair-bound and have caregivers to accompany them.

Flagged Background Check: For the safety of everyone, all students and tutors are background-checked before they are matched. A student with a flagged background check has some criminal history within the past seven years. The Literacy Office does not receive the details on the incident that led to the background check being flagged. These students will also fall under one of the categories above. 

Please remember that the Adult Literacy Service’s first priority is to find tutors for the students in our program. However, we often train tutors for other organizations with specific populations. We will be happy to give you information about these groups.