How You Can Help

*Helping Others to Read

Daniel J. Yovich
Post-Tribune Correspondent

Nancy Hecht and Ethel Gernsey get to see somthing special as they tutor adults. "I get a sense of real satisfaction from this. Just seeing the lights go on in the student's head when they grasp something makes me feel wonderful," said Gernsey of Portage.

"This girl tires so hard," said Hecht of Highland, about the single mother she's working with now. "The most rewarding thing about this is to feel the excitement she feels as she makes progress."

Hecht and Gernsey come from different backgrounds and chose to be tutors for different reasons.

Hecht worked for 15 years as a media specialist in the Hammond schools, but had not been in a classroom since her nursing training 30 years ago. When her children and their families moved out of state last year, she decided to volunteer as a tutor at the Munster branch of the Lake County Public Library. She typically spends two hours twice a week with a student.

Her current student is a mother, who holds two jobs to make ends meet. Hecht knows the woman is learning but believes medical problems are impeding her progress.

"It is really heartbreaking when you have someone who tries so hard, and there are problems of a physical nature holding up their progress," Hecht said. "I currently have a student with perception problems, who needs diagnostic testing. There is simply no money available."

The student couldn't write cursively and had difficulty with spelling when Hecht began working with her. She has mastered long-hand and is poised to improve further. "She inverts letters and numbers pretty often," Hecht said. "It is not a matter of intelligence. This girl has a high school diploma. It really hurts not to be able to get her to an eye specialist."

While Hecht has no prior teaching experience, Gernsey is an old hand in the classroom. She works with adults in Hobart through Portage Adult Education.

Gernsey devotes 15 hours per week to tutoring adult learners and welcomes the change of pace from her high school teaching days. She also trains volunteers to work with students. She has a master's degree in education but emphasizes that no special requirements are expected of potential tutors.