Opening New Doors for Literacy with Skype
Jersey City Free Public Library
Innovation Synopsis
The Literacy Program utilizes Skype to give students full transparency in online interaction and access to private chat lines with administrative staff. Tutors start class and share content in group chat. Skype allows Literacy staff to monitor classes, register students using integrated Microsoft Forms and assign students to moderated groups.
Challenge/Opportunity
The pandemic and subsequent lockdown created a need to transition from a f2f program to one that is digital. Initially, there was no way for staff monitor classes because everyone was working on separate apps. Skype gave our program transparency and control by keeping staff in the background of all classes and gave students a voice they never had in-person, providing them access to staff members should need arise. Furthermore, Skype helped clearly define staff roles as registration/class admins.
Key Elements of Innovation
- Staff act as class group admins and registration liaisons moving students through registration group chats based on document verification, Microsoft Forms for intake completion, testing, interview and orientation.
- Staff create moderated class groups and solve technical issues.
- Students can talk privately to staff or tutors.
- Students, tutors and staff can access recordings of classes, assignments, assignment history, chat
history, meeting duration (date/time), file attachments (30 days) in-chat and transfer records.
Achieved Outcomes
- Higher student engagement per student at 94 hour average (up from 67 hour average last year)
- Higher student retention: only 39 students left (down from 161 students who left last year)
- Higher tutor retention: 5 tutors left (down from 11 tutors last year)
- Total Tutor hours = 1161.5 (up from 977.25), with increase in overall digital literacy for all students, tutors and staff
- Fully online program capabilities ensure full program operation with or without physical
contact
