35 Tutoring Off the Page

Odyssey Beyond Bars uses a tutoring model (at least for writing classes) that relies on students reading aloud. There are three key reasons for this:

• It helps them develop their writing voice and feel ownership of that voice.
• It also helps the students in the tutoring session develop their listening and constructive criticism skills.
• It builds community, allowing students (with permission) to engage in and invest in each other’s work.

Additionally, reading aloud:

• Is the quickest, easiest, and most engaging way to conduct a tutoring session with multiple students, particularly when you are tutoring via Zoom.
• Focuses everyone’s attention on macro issues–organization, supporting details/descriptions, coherence of ideas, etc.–rather than micro-issues, like punctuation and grammar. Overall, we want to focus on the big picture in the early drafts with our students.

Accessibility note: I often ask if a student is comfortable reading or if they’d be willing to have someone else in the room read.