Dissonance--the path to discovery

“Good writing disturbs: it creates dissonance.

Students need to seek the dissonance of discovery…”

Sommers 178

My tutoring and TA experiences this week reminded me of the importance of Sommers’ words. After a semester away from tutoring and a not quite long enough winter break, it was easy to forget that tutoring (and even grading) is not about finding the gross grammatical errors of students or berating them for poor phrasing, but rather about leading students towards the making of meaning. By nature, writing is (or should be) an act of discovery, and revision can play an important role in this process. Sadly, students often misconceive revision to be simply a rewording activity, and our comments as tutors can greatly reaffirm this misbelief or challenge them to discover and create new meaning within their work. Sommers argues that students lack “strategies for handling the whole essay,” and I believe that is where we as tutors enter the picture. Our job is not to concentrate upon grammar, but rather to address the “whole essay,” as Sommers phrases it, concentrating first upon meaning and last upon style and grammar. So, I will challenge myself over the coming weeks to ask the following questions. Does this paper follow the assignment requirements? Does it have a clear and strong thesis? Does the student focus upon that thesis or get distracted? Is there adequate support for their thesis? Is the paper properly organized? It is these questions that will prompt the student towards an act of discovery; even if such questions create a temporary “dissonance,” this “dissonance” will make meaning in a way that fixing grammar never could.

Nanette--West writing tutor

Procrastination: Break the Cycle

Cartoon taken from

http://iwastesomuchtime.com/on/?i=33936

Don't be part of the cycle. 

Come visit any of the Writing Centers across ASU's campuses.  We're here to help you at any stage of the procrastination process. 

What I've Learned from Long Writing Projects

What I've Learned from Long Writing Projects

I've been in school for a long time. I've also lead students through 6 week long research papers. The idea of writing a long paper is daunting. However, there are a few things I've learned about taking the time to work on a long project. 

Time management is key. If you're like me, you freak out and wait until the last minute to write under pressure. "I do my best work under pressure." How many times have you said that to yourself out loud? Unfortunately, this practice takes a toll on your well-being. So, here are my tricks:

1. Get a Blank Calendar. I love the free printable ones from calendarsthatwork.com. You can choose from a handful of different styles. I like the 2 month versions. You can print that particular one for up to 4 months. The calendars download to Microsoft Word, so I copy and paste the calendars and change all the dates if I need more. 

2. Brainstorm "To Do's." This may require brainstorming my project, researching articles, reading these articles and taking notes, writing a rough draft, getting a second opinion, rewriting, getting a third opinion, etc. Break down those steps to the SMALLEST pieces. Smaller pieces are easier to work with than large, daunting tasks.

3. Set Time Frames & Completion Deadlines. Keep in mind that you will only complete the things you think you can do. Ask yourself, can I read this article in a day? What other obligations do I have? Do I really want to work on this project every day? I wouldn't want to work on my paper on my birthday. Be realistic.

4. Best Advice. The best advice I've received about writing is something that I have heard from multiple people in academia: Write every day. I am still trying to figure out how it works for me. I once made a resolution where I wrote and read something every day. I kept a calendar (using that calendarsthatwork.com website) and I marked that I read something and wrote something every day. That lasted me for the first half of the year. Being conscious about reading and writing every day and marking it on the calendar made me commit to it. 

5. Reward Yourself. In order to maintain some balance, I like to reward myself when I hit a milestone. I finished all the readings. I wrote my rough draft. I sent it off to someone to read it and I'm waiting to hear back. It's time for "me time." This was as simple as treating myself to a movie out or dinner with a friend.

6. Find a Buddy or Group. Get a writing buddy, someone who will check up on you, or use your digital calendar and get alerts for the milestone tasks. A writing buddy should be there to write with you. When my friend was writing her take home written exam, I sat with her while she wrote and I graded papers. I have asked my best friend in the past to email me and check up on me to see if I'm on task (and make sure I eat!) I set my calendar on my phone to alert me the day before I wanted to have something due, so I can be sure to complete it.

With everything, it is truly up to you to make the time and make it work. And when you get stuck, I suggest reading this blog: http://unstuckcommunity.tumblr.com/

Unstuck is an app for iPad that I just downloaded and started working on. I answered a bunch of questions and it told me I was an Avoider. It is 100% correct, and it made me feel like I need to reread all the words I have written in this blog and take my own advice.

 

Melissa - Graduate writing tutor @ Tempe

Confused about commas?

Do you have a difficult time figuring out the placement of commas? One of the most common mistakes writers make is the improper use of commas. It is important to remember that a comma in writing is like a pause in a sentence when speaking. See the link below for great tips on how to use commas. Multiple quizzes are also included so that you can test your knowledge!

http://www2.ivcc.edu/rambo/eng1001/commas.htm

Overcoming Procrastination

Assess the Task. Spend a few minutes thinking through everything that needs to be done, then, if possible, segment the task into various smaller pieces. It’s much easier to tackle smaller chunks than one huge task.

“Once begun, it’s half done.” Yes, a cliché inspirational poster quote, but quite true. Don’t shoot for completion in one sitting. This will overwhelm you every time. Just begin. Getting started is the key, and incremental progress will follow.

Schedule “Action Sessions.” Progress, even a little bit each day, adds up, and over time increases your confidence that you can, that you will, finish. Schedule 15- to 30-minute “action sessions” with realistic goals in mind, and set your mind to completing these goals.

Eliminate Distractions. Find a quiet place, and try to make your “action sessions” count, all 15-30 minutes of them (or whatever amount of time you designate).

Reward Yourself. This can help seemingly painful projects become more pleasurable. After completing an “action session,” take a nap, buy a latte, call a friend, round up a game of ultimate Frisbee. The point is to have something to look forward to, so that you begin to associate hard work at school with pleasure.

Find a (Good) Study Partner. And not just anyone, either. Find someone that cares about their performance even more than you do. The old adage, “If you want to be a good student, hang out with good students,” is not only true, but imperative.

Be Reasonable. Don’t beat yourself up about getting everything perfect. Remember, you will take on—and likely complete—hundreds, possibly thousands, of projects throughout your college career. The goal of making every one of them perfect is not only impossible, but silly. Remember, it’s more important that every project gets finished, not that every project be perfect.

Source-

"Overcoming Procrastination." Web log post. College View. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Jan. 2013.

The Little Things

A lot of first-time writers make the mistake of believing that they have to write about Big Important Concepts (life, society, religion, politics, death, etc.) in order to be a successful writer. This is not necessarily true, and tackling big subjects right away (whether it's for a school paper, a blog entry, a short story or a novel) can be intimidating. Sometimes the best inspiration comes from the little things in life: a conversation with a friend, the way sunlight filters through the windows in your room, a glance from a stranger. When you pay attention to the world around you, you'll begin to realize that everything in your life can be a source of inspiration. There's nothing wrong with tackling big subjects, of course, but the little things are often more immediate, real, and easy to relate to :)

Jess
(writing tutor)

Writer's Block Again

Hello All,

It is a lovely day today at the ASU West Writing Center. I just wanted to start by talking about writer’s block because that’s what I am currently experiencing while typing this blog. So, what better way to get over writer’s block then to write about it? It’s a win-win situation, really. Writer’s block, it’s a dreaded term, but it happens to the best of us. It strikes at the most inconvenient times too, like two hours before your philosophy paper is due, or when you dare to think, “Hey I’ll get this done early,” but alas! Writer’s block hits you square in the face and you’re left staring blankly at your computer screen (or notebook, if you’re old fashioned). Sometimes though, it can be, dare I say it? — Good for you? Sometimes it can clear out all those useless bits of fluff that have filled your head. It can force you to abandon those clichéd thoughts and take on a new perspective. It’s a peculiar thing, writer’s block, but it is as much a part of the writing process as grammar and conventions—annoying, but necessary.

-Haley, Writing Tutor

Don't be Bitter, Reconsider!

If you’ve ever interacted with me, you will know that I like to complain. I like to complain a lot, and complain a lot I do. But at the end of the day it is things that I love – my job, my family, my students/staff – that I complain about, almost to the point that you’d be fooled into thinking that I abhor all of them. Why is that?

It is my belief that it is nature for most of us humans to be blind to the good, rip out the silver lining and tear it up with our teeth, and then pretend that nothing can ever be bright or beautiful or worth appreciating. Certainly the most positive of us have trouble staying positive all the time and will occasionally let a gloom settle into our bones. We all feel helpless at times, and when I feel helpless, I complain. It is my coping mechanism.

I am not ignorant to the fact that there are better coping mechanisms, ones that are probably more productive that listing all the things that have gone wrong today, yesterday, last month, etc. But maybe others are; are you aware of the things you could be doing to improve where you’re at, the outlook you have, or the direction you’re headed?

Today and tomorrow, the staff at the University Academic Success Programs department is helping put on a series of workshops for first-time freshmen who are on academic probation. The program is titled PASS, Pathways to Achieving Student Success. I anticipate that we will all run into a lot of complaining and excuse-making in the next thirty-six hours or so. It is our goal to help re-motivate and re-energize these students who may have lost their direction, who like me find it is sometimes easier to bad-mouth the circumstances than to be proactive about changing them. It is my hope that they find a different perspective today, and that they learn that there are people, staff and faculty, and plenty of resources available to them to help them on their way.

I challenge you, and myself, to stop next time you want to say something negative, and find something else to feel positive about. Let us set an example for others around us who cannot see the good things they have. And when they can't, help them find something to be positive about.

Now that I’m done preaching, a writerly bit of humor to end the week:

Happy Friday, and Happy New Year!

-- Your overly mushy Polytechnic Writing Center Supervisor

Struggle

If you’re like me, all your undertakings probably begin the same way: with low whimpers of anxiety that soon erupt into panic.

On day one, your smile is wide, your handshake firm, your notepad laden with neat lines of memos. There’s too much to take in, but that’s a typical first day, right? By the second day, it’s still too much. The third day promises no better and by day five, even the weekend seems like the comma in a long and tedious paragraph. You lie awake each night, re-imagining the day’s events, second-guessing yourself. How was my paper? How was my presentation? Did I do okay? Did I say anything stupid? Did people like me? Can I do this?

I can’t do this.

Escape becomes your next preoccupation. Like a hunted animal, your thoughts scramble from one safe hiding place to the next.

I could drop this class, I could take it next semester.

I could get another job.

I could postpone that phone call.

Meanwhile, dates and expectations and assignments and meetings crop up, snarling and snaggling and tripping you as you run: they are the thistle and vine, the serpent on her belly. The hunter with his beast.

The thing about running is that eventually you get somewhere.

Artist: Wing Yin Tang 

Slowly, you learn to break the thistle, to untangle the vine, to avoid the serpent and the hunter. To thrive in the forest.

This NPR story describes how different cultures approach the idea of struggle, and how that approach impacts success. Struggle can feel frustrating and scary, but it is a meaningful part of learning. The Writing Center is a safe place to struggle, to say “I don’t know,” to learn.

Come learn with us. 

Writing Center mom's lament

Not five minutes ago I ran into Tony, former student employee, current anesthesiologist. "You're still here," he said, "and you look exactly the same." I don't, of course, look the same, and neither does he. He used to look like a college student, and now he looks like a doctor.
He's right about one thing, though: I am still here.
That realization at first made me sad. Students pass through our tutoring centers and go on to heal the sick, comfort the elderly, and invent clean transportation. I merely stand at the doorway and wave my apron goodbye. At one time, I thought I'd do something fabulous.
On the other hand, these centers are sacred spaces. We help the go-getters learn to go and get. In the end,  I am on the team that goes to Mars by assisting with the launch. So keep studying; keep writing. We’ll continue to help.