The Writing Center (as I see it)

I try to approach the Writing Center as a safe space where students can receive compassionate feedback. If the University is a stage, we are those who wait behind the velvet curtains, powdering noses and running lines. The trouble is that the audience expects - as they should - a five-star performance, and sometimes the actors were never taught exactly how to deliver that line or dance the closing number. Each student acts a different role, in a different genre - ballet, hip hop, vaudeville. Our role is to know it all, and to provide a helping hand unseen. 

Empathic Tutoring

Empathic Tutoring in the Third Space

Writing Lab Newsletter, 36.9-10, pg. 11-13

            Empathic tutoring methods enable a tutor to, when necessary, step outside the realm of tutoring and into a role of advocacy. According to this Writing Lab article by Nancy Wilson and Keri Fitzgerald, this occurs when a tutor identifies an issue beyond grammar or content, an issue that could be in the classroom or within the tutor/tutee relationship.

            For instance, the article notes that professors are not perfect; sometimes the assignments they give overlook certain differences among students. An assignment asking students to identify what they find attractive about the opposite sex may ostracize gay students, etc. In my experience tutoring, I have occasionally found the wording of an assignment to be strange. Typically I try to justify why the professor might have worded it that way, while still trying to help the student understand better. After reading this article, I can see how sometimes the situation might necessitate something further. The article says not to view the faculty-tutor-tutee relationship as a hierarchy, but rather to view the faculty member as the audience. In other words, professors are not far-off entities that make the rules that we must morph to adhere to; they can be part of the discussion, too. I have met with many students who are intimidated by their professors, and I would like to show them this is not necessary.

            Sometimes empathic tutoring actually requires the tutor to take him/herself out of the situation and leave their personal biases aside. Occasionally a student will come in, typically with an argumentative writing assignment, and they will present to you an argument that directly challenges your beliefs and values - and then you have to help them strengthen their argument. This can be tough, but you can still help them strengthen their argument by playing the respectful devil’s advocate, the article said. In this discussion-based setting, both the tutor and tutee could develop empathy for new beliefs.

            I like the idea that tutoring challenges the “banking concept” of education (depositing random bits of knowledge in students’ brains with no context). I think discussion among tutors, tutees and faculty can foster a healthier learning environment for all parties.

(Annika, Downtown Phoenix campus writing tutor)

Hybridity

As a writing tutor and former English major,  I (like many others) have become familiar with the writing process and terminology. Yet, it is easy to forget that the students who visit our centers most often are not as familiar with the terms we throw around. Therefore, something as seemingly simple as “run on” can catch a student off guard; they may not recognize the terminology we regularly employ or understand how to respond. Recently, I had a student tell me that she knew she had “run ons” within her essay, but she had no idea what they were or what to do about it. This reminded me of how important it is that we meet students at their level, whatever that may be.  I think this is perhaps what Muriel Harriss was referencing when stating that “a tutor is a hybrid, stuck somewhere between a peer and a teacher, who cannot lean too much one way or the other” (380). I do not believe Harris is discouraging the acquisition of knowledge, but rather reminding tutors that knowledge can distance us from our tutees if we allow it. For me, her words reinforce the importance of engaging students in an active dialogue; my role is to encourage students to articulate their needs (if at all possible) and to actively explain ideas using words that do not intimidate but promote understanding.

Nanette--West writing tutor

Why Writing Tutors Are Like Ninjas

Writing tutors are like ninjas in so many ways. First of all, we protect the sacred art of writing from those who wish to tarnish its ways. (It’s night not nite…) We battle incorrectly placed commas. We remind semi-colons that they can’t just go anywhere they want. We fight our way into the deepest, darkest corners of the human mind and won’t give up until we can find a proper topic sentence.

However, we are not secretive ninjas. We are more than willing to guide you in our ways – to teach you our methods so that one day you, too, can be a writing ninja. ‘Tis far nobler for us ninjas to tutor you rather than simply correct your paper.

As the saying goes: “If you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. If you teach a man to fish, you feed him for life.” And we don’t want you to starve.

Alyssa--West writing tutor