The program
A tutor, a child and 45 minutes.
Since 2005, Augustine Literacy Project–Charlotte has trained volunteers to teach reading, writing and spelling one-to-one. Teachers in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools refer the young students who most need help with reading. An ALP tutor then works with each child for 45 minutes, twice a week, free to families.
Lessons follow the Orton-Gillingham approach: structured, cumulative and multisensory. Children hear a sound, say it, see it and build it, often with letter tiles. Over the years, ALP has helped more than 2,700 students from under-resourced communities reach reading proficiency.
When every tutor teaches it their own way
For most of its history, ALP trained volunteers in the breadth and depth of early literacy instruction. Each tutor then planned lessons and managed materials. In the first phase of the UNC Charlotte evaluation, which surveyed 135 tutors, one-to-one teaching came up as highly rewarding for tutors and children alike.
The same research found strain too. Some newer tutors wanted more training, and the program needed more monitoring and follow-up to keep lessons consistent.
To reach more children, ALP needed every tutor to teach the same strong lesson, and a way to see that it was happening.
