Information for Schools and Community Organizations
Each school and community organization involved in the L2L program has a designated L2L Coordinator who is responsible for tailoring the program to suit the context of their particular school or organization, and for engaging and supporting students involved in the program. An L2L Trainer is also assigned to each participating institution to train tutors and collaborate with the L2L Coordinator to ensure that each participant is successful.
Within schools and community organizations
Tutors
L2L Tutors are high achieving students who provide one-on-one mentorship and academic support to their peers. Tutors are trained by L2L Trainers on hands-on strategies for effective tutoring.
Peers
L2L Peers are students seeking extra support with their school work.
L2L Trainer
L2L Trainers are either veteran teachers, administrators, or young professionals with experience in classroom teaching or youth mentorship. They lead tutor training sessions focused on helping tutors become stronger leaders and better mentors, and provide ongoing support throughout L2L programs to ensure that all participants are successful.
L2L
CO-Ordinator
Coordinators are teachers, administrators or other staff members at schools or community organizations who collaborate with L2L Trainers to manage L2L programs at their school.
The Training
The L2L tutor training curriculum emphasizes student-centered and collaborative learning. At the beginning of each L2L program, L2L Trainers provide 2-3 hours of training focused on strategies for effective tutoring, troubleshooting common challenges in tutoring, and supporting students with different learning preferences. Throughout the peer-tutoring sessions, L2L Trainers conduct review sessions with tutors to encourage reflection, discuss strategies, engage in problem-solving and role-playing activities, and share experiences with one another.
The Tutoring
After completing the L2L Tutor Training, each tutor is matched with a peer by their L2L Coordinator. The tutor is responsible for providing at least ten hours of academic support to their peer through one-on-one peer-tutoring sessions. Tutoring sessions are catered to the particular learning needs of the peer. Warm-up exercises, fun educational activities, and other resources are provided in training and on an on-going basis to support tutors in the delivery of these sessions.
The L2L Coordinator
Every school or community organization engaged in L2L programming has an L2L Coordinator responsible for supervising the program and supporting the L2L Trainer to ensure the program’s success.
L2L Coordinators are staff or administration at schools or community organizations who support L2L Trainers in adapting the program to the needs of their students, lead the selection and matching of Tutors and Peers, coordinate and arrange the supervision of peer-tutoring sessions, and support L2L Trainers in collecting monitoring and evaluation surveys from all program participants. L2L provides reference letters to L2L Coordinators upon request.
Responsibilities of a School Co-ordinator
Identify Tutors at the school
Identify Peers at the school
Schedule 2-3 hours of tutor training with the school’s L2L trainer
Supervise, or arrange for the supervision of tutoring sessions
Ensure that participating Tutors deliver at least 10 hours of tutoring sessions
Coordinate 1-3 review sessions with the school’s L2L trainer
Support Tutors on an ongoing basis
Support with the collection of registration and post-program monitoring and evaluation surveys from tutors and peers
Lead the process of integrating L2L at the school
Coordinate with the L2L Trainer to host an end of program celebration and certificate distribution ceremony
Benefits to students
Tutors participate in L2L for a variety of reasons, including improving their leadership skills, networking, and gaining experience for their resumes. In some cases, secondary schools offer our program for academic credit or for volunteer hours. All tutors who complete the program receive their L2L tutor certification. Peers benefit from increased confidence in school and improved grades as a result of the one-on-one support they receive. Additionally, the relationships that are created between L2L program participants strengthen the sense of community within schools and community organizations.
Frequently asked questions
How is the program structured?”
The L2L program model is simple and flexible. The following 4 core elements are common to every program:
– Students receive 2-3 hours of tutor training from an L2L trainer
– Tutors complete a minimum of 10 hours of one-on-one peer-tutoring sessions
– 1-3 group review and debrief meetings take place between L2L tutors and trainers
– A final celebration and certificate distribution ceremony is hosted to celebrate student success!
When is L2L offered at schools, and how much time does the program take, from start to finish?
L2L programming can start at various points during the school year. The latest recommended start date for an L2L program is January for elementary schools, and February for semestered secondary schools. With 2-3 training sessions for tutors, at least 10 of peer-tutoring sessions, 3 mid-program review meetings, a final review meeting, and celebration, each L2L program takes at least a couple months from start to finish.
The most important thing to consider when planning and scheduling an L2L school program is what will work in the specific context of a school. Some schools will want to support a particular grade with tutoring leading up to a provincial test; some schools may want to offer the program to students who want to boost their grades before applying for college or university; and some schools will want to engage with L2L on an ongoing basis all year to provide general support for all students.
Is there a cost for students to receive tutoring with L2L?
There is no cost for students to receive peer-tutoring with L2L. One of the driving purposes of our program is to offer academic support to students who would not otherwise receive it to due to a lack of financial means.
Who can be an L2L Coordinator?
L2L Coordinators have a passion for learning and for helping others, are creative problem solvers, and believe that all students can succeed under the right conditions with appropriate support. This role is open to anyone on staff at a school or community organization. If you are interested in bringing L2L to your institution and becoming an L2L Coordinator, please contact us at info@l2l.ca
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