Alfredo Rosas needs help finding the "oddball." He raises his hand and teacher William Randall comes over to look at the vocabulary list.
"Which animal doesn't live on land?" asks the teacher.
"It's the jellyfish," Rosas replies with enthusiasm. "That's the oddball!"
Rosas is doing his homework, but he is not at home. The seventh-grader is working on his assignments in the library of Fairview Middle School in Gonzales, which serves as a homework center on weekdays after school. On this day, it is packed with students who agree to follow the rules: sign in, don't engage in horseplay, and talk quietly - and only if the topic is related to homework. Those who stay a full hour receive bottled water and an apple.
Students like Mervin Sumagang find peace and quite, plus willing helpers like William Randall, at the homework center, which takes over the Fariview Middle School libary after classes end.
"I like coming here because I can concentrate on my homework," says Rosas. "There's a lot of noise at home with two brothers and one sister. It's much quieter here. And if I need help, I raise my hand and a teacher comes."
"Our kids need a little bit of help," says teacher Terry Ledesma, who staffs the homework center with Randall and other Gonzales Teachers Association members.
"A lot of these kids live in crowded situations in multi-family homes, apartments or trailers," says Ledesma. Many of their parents are migrant workers with low education levels and limited English skills.
"We saw the need and started the homework center five years ago. The kids like it. They know that teachers care about them. In this place, they start thinking their homework is pretty important stuff."
Homework centers ensure that all students receive the homework help they need to keep up with their class. In Gonzales, teachers are paid to work after school Monday through Thursday with students who need assistance, or perhaps just a quiet place to work. Some students who are struggling in class are told to attend the homework center by their teachers or parents.
The students appreciate the homework center not only for the extra help they receive, but also for providing an environment where they can concentrate.
"When I go home, my dogs and cats are rubbing against my legs and I get distracted," says Kayla Kaufman, 13.
Fairview teacher Terry Ledesma appreciates the chance to provide individualized attention to students like Kim Heston.
"It keeps me away from TV," says Pedro Diaz, 12. "My grades have improved, and I feel good about that."
Parents are also enthusiastic about the center. "It is helping my son," says Martha Rosas, mother of Alfredo, through an interpreter. "It is difficult for us to help him when the assignments are in English."
"The homework center helps students who care and want to make an effort," says Ledesma. "I enjoy working here, because I can provide personal, individual attention."
"I've seen some kids really turn around," says Randall. "I had one student last year who was getting D's. He was a great kid, but his homework was either incomplete or had errors.
"I called his mother and asked if he could come here. I saw what he was doing wrong and gave him extra time. We worked on the skills he was lacking. His grades went from D's to B's. This year he is continuing to do very well."
