Tufts - Center for Reading and Language Research

Center for Reading and Language Research Tufts University’s efforts to promote and enhance literacy combine the work of a major academic center, true service-learning programs, and an annual educational fair. Under the leadership and direction of Dr. Maryanne Wolf, John DiBiaggio Professor of Citizenship and Public Service, the Center for Reading and Language Research (CRLR) at Tufts is widely recognized for its groundbreaking research leading to advances in dyslexia testing and treatment. An affiliate of Tufts' Eliot Pearson Department of Child Development, a primary goal of CRLR’s work is to help children who are experiencing a lack of success in school. The CRLR provides assessment, consultation and tutoring services for educators, school administrators, students and families. The comprehensive mission of the CRLR includes: • To conduct high quality research on all aspects of reading development and reading impairment • To develop and evaluate state-of-the-art intervention for children with developmental reading disorders • To provide research, teaching, internship, and tutoring opportunities for faculty, undergraduate and graduate students • To offer a range of teaching and tutoring services to families in the Boston area and Tufts neighboring communities. The Malden Summer Literacy Enrichment Program is a collaboration between the City of Malden and the CRLR. This intensive four-week reading intervention was developed in the spring of 1998 to serve the needs of severely impaired readers and young children. Due to the success of this initiative, a year-round program (Malden After-School Program for Success (MAPS)) was developed in the fall 1998. The Tufts Literacy Corps (TLC) was established in 1997 through the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Development and the CRLR in response to national studies indicating that the nation’s fourth-graders were reading below grade level. Since then TLC has represented the University's commitment to public service by providing student tutors to work with children in Medford and Somerville schools. TLC student tutoring positions are work-study supported and directed by Dr. Cynthia Krug who, with help of a full time staff, provides training and supervision for this program. There are currently about 90 TLC tutors working in the Somerville/Medford area focusing in the areas of reading, writing and math within 2nd-9th grade levels. TLC Tutors work one-on-one with children and use a variety of strategies to help with reading and writing, among them are the innovative methods designed at the CRLR. Through the combination of public service and educational outreach, the TLC program fosters a sense of civic engagement and enhances the students’ own education through a practical application of their skills. For more information about the Tufts Literacy corps, go to: http://ase.tufts.edu/tlc/ The Tufts Jumpstart Program is the Tufts University arm of a national early childhood education program that pairs college students with at-risk preschoolers to help prepare them to succeed when they enter school. Approximately 45 Tufts students contribute 200 total hours each per year through individual and classroom assistance. Before becoming a Tufts Jumpstart Corps member, students complete an intensive pre-service training period. They then join a team of 8-10 college students, serving as a mentor for a child deemed at-risk by his or her teacher. Corps members earn their Federal Work Study award or credit toward graduation and all students are eligible for an additional education award from AmeriCorps. Finally, an annual educational fair promoting the importance of early childhood literacy, Read by the River is held by Tufts Hillel in partnership with the City of Medford. Dozens of Tufts students visit Medford schools to promote the fair, and they participate in the celebration, showing children how to incorporate reading into their everyday lives. More than 500 Medford school children attend the event and form bonds with the local community and Tufts students. For more information about Read by the River, go to: http://www.readbytheriver.org/