Library offers free homework assistance

But you can avoid the drama and the cost of a tutor, since free help is as close as your computer, your telephone or a public place near you.

The Pima County Public Library offers Homework Help for students of all ages. They can get help in a variety of subjects.

Two county librarians, Gina Macaluso and Ella Gomez, work together to keep the 15-year-old program accessible, reliable and available. Macaluso coordinates all the youth services offered by the library. Gomez says she "takes care of Homework Help," among other programs.

"I'm constantly monitoring," Gomez said. "I want to make sure we have a quality program."

Students are surveyed every year. Last year, online services received a 97 percent satisfaction rate, and more than 95 percent of students receiving face-to-face tutoring were satisfied.

Whether it's the excellence of the program, the tough economic times, or both, the numbers speak volumes.

During the 2007-2008 school year, 14,586 students used the program, but in 2008-2009, the service was used by 21,183 students — a30 percent increase.

That's a 30 percent increase in services without a 30 percent increase in the budget.

The face-to-face part of the program offered in libraries, schools and Boys & Girls Clubs will begin two weeks later this year, on Sept. 8.

"We found it (the program) wasn't utilized in the first two weeks," Gomez said of the decision to delay the start of the program.

In tandem with Homework Help, the First Library Card program was launched in 2006 in an effort to sign up first-graders for library cards. In its first year, 1,202 cards were given out. In the 2008-2009 school year, 5,604 cards were issued under the program.

"Our goal is for every first-grader in Pima County to have a library card in four years," Macaluso said.

What does one program have to do with another? You need a library card to take advantage of the Homework Help program online — something a first-grader today will likely need tomorrow.

Razanne Chatila, a 16-year-old student at Tucson High Magnet School, said she uses the online help to finish homework.

"I think it really did help me maintain good grades," she recalled of her experience with the program during the last school year. "It helped me understand the topics I was learning and helped later with tests and other projects."

Tutors who work with students face to face are paid Pima County employees.

"That person is committed to being there," Gomez said of the tutors. "They bond with their students."

Stephanie Torres, 27, is a substitute teacher with the Sunnyside Unified School District and will tutor at the Mission Branch Library. "We help a lot of children with math and reading," she said. "We have bilingual students, and the languages are difficult for them."

Francisco Lizarraga, 35, has tutored students for about a decade. Lizarraga is an instructor at Pima Community College.

"It's really easy access for kids, especially at the schools," Lizarraga said. "I know a lot of parents don't have the time to sit down to help their kids."

GED classes will begin the same day as Homework Help at three branch libraries: Martha Cooper, 1377 N. Catalina Ave.; Valencia, 202 W. Valencia Road; and Woods Memorial, 3455 N. First Ave. Class times coincide with Homework Help, allowing parents and children time to study together.

Library cards, using the Homework Help program and attending GED classes are budget-friendly, Gomez said. "We only do free."

Free help with schoolwork

• What: Homework Help

• Who provides it: Pima County Public Library

• Web site: library.pima.gov

• Online hours: 3-10 p.m. (3-7 p.m. Spanish speakers), every day except major holidays

• Phone help hours: 4-6 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays; 1-4 p.m. Sundays

• Phone number: 791-4010

By Courtney Shelton Special to the Arizona Daily Star

Last year I had a difficult time understanding all my crazy geometry math problems. My mom probably could have helped, but I didn't really like her teaching skills. She told me the library offered homework help, which really was a grade-saver.

I went online, and while I waited for a tutor to become available I looked over my problems to figure out which ones bugged me the most.

The tutor would never just give me the answer but would sometimes introduce me to new theorems and gave me hints on what I was doing wrong.

Not actually being able to talk to the tutor never bothered me. I was still capable of getting everything across to him or her using the chat and the cool virtual whiteboard.

The whiteboard is beneath the chat screen, and you can draw pictures or write equations on it using your mouse.

This program has definitely saved me a few times — from embarrassment in class and from bad grades — and I would recommend it to anyone. It's good if you don't understand a topic, but it's great for reviews and study guides, too.

Courtney Shelton, a freshman at Flowing Wells High School, is the daughter of Arizona Daily Star reporter Shelley Shelton.