Mission Family: Free online tutoring available for many Army, Marine Corps children - Navy Community, Navy Spouse and Family Resources - Navy Times

Mission Family: Free online tutoring available for many Army, Marine Corps children

It’s 11 p.m., and you need help with that calculus homework. But your mother — the family math genius — is in Afghanistan.

If you’re in an Army or Marine Corps family, you can get free help 24 hours a day, seven days a week, through Tutor.com, under an initiative paid for by those military services.

Tutor.com spokeswoman Jennifer Kohn said Army-affiliated folks have completed more than 4,000 Tutor.com sessions. Marine Corps families have completed more than 6,000 sessions since their program began in September 2008. No word yet on whether any of the other services will offer a similar benefit.

Tutoring is available for students in kindergarten through grade 12, and on into college. Tutor.com offers one-on-one help from certified teachers, college professors, professional tutors and graduate school students from across the country. Tutors have expertise in math (including algebra, geometry and calculus), science (including earth science, biology, chemistry and physics), social studies and English.

How much money does this free service save you? If you had to pay for ths Tudor.com service, it might cost you $60 for 120 minutes of online tutoring and homework help, Kohn said. The average session is 20 to 25 minutes, though math and science sessions tend to be longer.

To access the free Tutor.com service, visit one of the following:

• www.tutor.com/military-programs

• www.usmc-mccs.org/library/tutor/index.cfm

• www.myarmyonesource.com/childyouthandschoolservices/cysservicesonlinetutoring/

Marine Corps families must contact their installation librarian for a user name and password in person, by phone, via e-mail or their local library Web site.

Army families — whether active duty, National Guard and Reserve, Army civilians, wounded warriors or survivors — can register online for a password.

Tutors undergo criminal background and reference checks. Students are anonymous, to protect their safety and identity. Tutors can’t ask for any personal information or contact students outside the online classroom, which uses controlled chat and an interactive white board.

Students also can also send computer files, such as essays, for review and assistance.

While it doesn’t offer one-to-one sessions with live tutors, another free resource is Student Online Achievement Resources, funded by taxpayer dollars and provided through the Military Impacted Schools Association at www.soarathome.org.

SOAR provides information and videos about specific skills, although it doesn’t provide sessions with live tutors. Students in grades three through 12 can take tests in math, reading and language arts, tailored to the standards of their state, or Defense Department schools.

SOAR gives feedback on the scores, then directs the student to online tutorials that will help them improve where needed.

Questions or suggestions? Contact staff writer Karen Jowers at kjowers@militarytimes.com.