Reading is the key to learning. For many of our community members,
including our most recent immigrants, the services of the Literacy
Volunteers of Middlesex (LVM) can make the difference between poverty
and prosperity, between despair and employment, between exclusion
and assimilation.
LVM's role is unique among local service organizations in that it
is the only free one-on-one tutoring program for Middlesex County
that uses trained volunteers to teach Basic Literacy or English for
Speakers of Other Languages. Tutors are trained to provide customized
instructional plans that develop English reading, writing and speaking
skills.
More than 15 years ago the National Commission on Excellence in Education
declared the United States "a nation at risk" because the
educational foundations of society were being eroded by mediocrity.
One of their conclusions was that "attentive parents are an irreplaceable
asset. If they read and talk to their children and help them with
their homework, schools are far better able to do their part."
By teaching parents to read and encouraging their participation and
involvement in their children's school, LVM can be a partner in the
family's educational success. Increased involvement results in higher
achievement by the children, and an increased likelihood of completing
high school and post secondary education. While LVM may entertain
commencing a family literacy program in the near future, LVM is already
having a profound effect upon family literacy.
