On Wednesdays, Wesline Désir, 46, of Brockton, attends English literacy tutoring from the small screen of her cellphone.
Désir, who works as a home health aide in assisted living, emigrated from Haiti nearly 28 years ago. For over four years, she has been a student of the Literacy Program at Thomas Crane Public Library in Quincy. The library’s literacy department, funded by the city of Quincy and the Literacy Volunteers of Massachusetts, offers free reading and writing lessons to local adult residents with below sixth-grade levels.
These one-on-one lessons became virtual with the COVID-19 pandemic — a challenge, considering that some tutors and many adult students were inexperienced in technology.
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On the other line, Désir’s tutor, Lisa Hemphill, 62, of Hingham meets with her by video chat. Sometimes, poor sound quality or a choppy connection can disrupt their lessons, especially when they are practicing letter or word pronunciations.
“I don’t have a whiteboard like I do in the tutoring room, so it just seems like everything takes maybe 20 or 30 percent longer,” said Hemphill, who tutors three students for an hour to 90 minutes each week. “Trying to judge how much they are really getting it — that’s harder to do.”
To compensate for the physical distance, Hemphill has been mailing out worksheets for students to complete and text photos of the pages for feedback. During lessons, she might hold her phone up to her laptop screen for Désir to follow along with online readings — a complicated but necessary setup, considering that Désir does not know how to use a laptop yet.
Despite these technology hurdles, Désir is determined to obtain a GED someday.
“That’s my goal and my big dream,” said Désir. “After that, I would like to pursue a nursing career, like to be an LPN.”
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Tragically, Désir’s 17-year-old son, Christopher, died in a car crash in 2018 before he could graduate from high school. Désir said she wants to earn a GED as an equivalent to a high school diploma in her son’s place, and “finish what’s left.”
Many literacy tutoring students are immigrants for which English is not their first language or may have never finished high school in their home country. About 50 students — down from 80 before the pandemic — have continued with the program since the summer.
Most volunteer tutors are of retirement age. By learning to use technology for their lessons, the tutors also feel less isolated, said Mary Diggle, manager of Quincy library’s Literacy Program and program manager of Literacy Volunteers of Massachusetts-Quincy.
That desire for social connection extends to the library’s once in-person conversation groups, English Talk Time. About 70 participants now video chat weekly in nine groups of six to eight people. Most are immigrants, from places like the Middle East, Asia, Russia, or Brazil.
“Connecting with other people from his or her country — that in itself is a role that the library plays, you know, to get out and see that there are other people in your situation and to make friends,” said Diggle.
Instead of handing out papers in a classroom, volunteer facilitators now screen-share picture prompts to spur everyday conversations during which participants can practice vocabulary, pronunciation, and syntax. Two of these groups also help prepare people for the US citizenship exam, particularly for the English proficiency portion.
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Each group is both a “practical language practice” and a “‘How are you doing?’ check-in,” said Molly Makrogianis, the Talk Time program coordinator.
Some immigrants were working professionals in their home country, and “they’re trying to regain their professional standing,” while others are moms who want to be able to help their children with school and communicate with teachers, said Makrogianis.
“We really want to help the parents keep up and feel like they are able to participate in that English-speaking side of their children’s lives.”
But online meetings can’t exactly replicate the friendships that developed organically between adults when the groups used to meet at the library.
Some participants have said “it doesn’t really compare specifically being in the same room and turning and having a side conversation with someone,” said Makrogianis.
Many literacy tutoring students didn’t have their own computer or reliable Internet at home before the pandemic.
In January 2020, the library began partnering with Tech Goes Home, a Boston-based nonprofit, to provide free Chromebooks and at-home Internet to literacy tutoring students, along with basic computer classes. Volunteer tutors, who are trained by the nonprofit and the library, now teach students to access web browsers, respond to e-mails, and use Zoom or Google Meet prgrams.
Tashema, 37, of Brockton, who asked that her last name not be published for privacy, began literacy lessons with Hemphill last October and uses one of these laptops.
“I kind of prefer it being online,” said Tashema, who was already familiar with computers and works at a hospital in pathology database entry. “I don’t like the class setting, to tell you the truth.” She wants to take the GED toward pursuing a real estate license.
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“Especially struggling with the reading for so long,” added Tashema, who emigrated from Jamaica 18 years ago and has dyslexia, “they made me comfortable, just helped me out a lot, so I love it.”
With their own laptops, Hemphill’s students can access online interactive reading apps, where they might highlight passages of biographies or scroll through nonfiction articles about volcanoes or gravity.
Last month, Désir began using a laptop for the first time, and with some guidance from the library’s remote computer classes, Désir will eventually be able to screen share while video chatting and view online readings on a bigger screen.
“There’s nothing better than teaching a student something, and … you can tell that they get it,” said Hemphill. “You know, it’s still the most meaningful thing that I’ve ever done … So we’ll just keep going. I’m thrilled that they want to, even during this time.”
Julia Hong can be reached at globelocal@globe.com.
