ThirdQuarter News Stories
ThirdQuarters Have Talent for Tutoring
"I really get the sense that (ThirdQuarters are) cut out for doing this type of thing and that they're going to be really valuable."
Mary Kiviste
Okanagan College volunteer tutor co-ordinator,
South Okanagan region, B.C.
A good tutor can help anyone learn their ABCs, but it takes a great tutor to instill a love of reading in students.
That's why Okanagan College volunteer tutor co-ordinator Mary Kiviste is excited about the volunteers she's found through ThirdQuarter.
"When we're looking for tutors, not everybody is going to fit into our program," Kiviste said.
"They don't have to be teachers at all. Most of our tutors don't have a teaching background, but they have the sense that they've enjoyed books. It's been a big part of their lives. They know how important it is to have these skills and they would love to be able to help somebody else out with them."
Good tutors also have patience and a good sense of humour, and Kiviste is finding that ThirdQuarters fill the bill. She's already signed up three TQ volunteers and put 10 more on a wait list for future vacancies.
"I really get the sense that they're cut out for doing this type of thing and that they're going to be really valuable," she said.
"I've been quite excited about ThirdQuarter. This is hooking me in with people I'd love to have in my program so I've been quite thrilled with it."
Tutors help adult students upgrade reading, writing or math skills. Some students are preparing for college courses, while others want to learn to read to their children.
Gloria Jopling, 66, leaped at the opportunity to be among the first ThirdQuarters on Kiviste's roster of 55 tutors in the south Okanagan region.
Born in Vancouver, Jopling moved back to Canada from Australia in 2009, and signed up with ThirdQuarter in Penticton last October.
Jopling's family moved to Colombia when she was a baby and she spent her school years in Aruba and Florida. She's a "compulsive reader" now, but had tutors when she struggled with reading as a child.
"I've had the experience and maybe I can help someone gain the confidence now to pick up a book and explore," she said.
Jopling lived in Vancouver for four years in the 1960s, then hopped a boat to Australia. She arrived in Sydney with $50 in her pocket and "drifted" for 40 years.
She married and raised a son, who now lives in Japan, and took a series of college courses to feed her curious spirit while working at a variety of jobs, including driving a truck and managing several offices.
"I've done lots of little jobs for a year or two in each different place," Jopling said.
She expects to continue that pattern as a ThirdQuarter.
Volunteer tutors must commit two hours a week, starting with 16 hours of training.
Jopling wants to help at least one student before she takes on more commitments, but she'd like to pursue a volunteer bookkeeping position later on. It's her specialty and she excels at accounts. In fact, her last employer asked to her to move back to Australia.
"But I've always made it a policy to never go back," she said. "But just to move forward."
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Archives
November 2011
October 2011
- ThirdQuarter is a Great Resource
- National Seniors Council Report to Federal Government Promotes ThirdQuarter
September 2011
August 2011
July 2011
June 2011
- ThirdQuarter Presents Inaugural Employer Recognition Certificate
- ThirdQuarter Launches in Portage la Prairie
May 2011
- ThirdQuarter Fills Hiring Needs
- ThirdQuarters Are Reliable and Flexible
- ThirdQuarter Fills a Niche and Needs
- You Talked. We Acted.
- Portage la Prairie Launch Postponed
- ThirdQuarter 2.0 to be released May 17
April 2011
- ThirdQuarters Have Talent for Tutoring
- A Refreshing Change
- Bill Denyar - President - Atlantic Chambers of Canada
March 2011
- When Jim King talks about transferable skills, he speaks from experience
- Wanting a ThirdQuarter Encore
February 2011
- ThirdQuarter Hires Make an Impact
- ThirdQuarter Hires Make an Impact
- Steve McLellan - CEO - Saskatchewan Chambers of Commerce
- Don Anderson found his perfect match in ThirdQuarter
January 2011
- Office of Literacy and Essential Skills
Bureau de l'alphabétisation et des compétences essentielles
