From North's assertions on the purpose of a Writing Center, as tutors, we can get one major message: we are commentators, not editors. It is blatantly obvious that most of the college community does not understand the purpose of a writing center, so they treat it like any other tutoring lab and only come in if they are at the lowest level of comprehension. Like North says, only "the others" come in to seek help. From this, the Writing Center gets a reputation that it is only there to help "pretty up" papers and fix the little problems, when this is not, nor should be, the case.
Our goal as Writing Center staff should be to help students improve their writing ability, not their specific papers, and certainly not their English abilities. Through developing a relationship with the students, we can get an idea of their initial writing ability, come up with tools they can use to improve their papers, and use specific methods to help them take their abilities to the next level. This main idea focuses on the progression of the student, rather than the perfection of the assignment. When their progression is the focus, we are to hope that as time goes on, their writing will improve. No amount of "fix it" work will teach the student how to write a better paper! As North says, "our job is to produce better writers, not better writing."
The most efficient way to help a student take their writing to the next level appears to be engaging in discussion about their writing. North emphasizes the demand for tutors who will engage their students in the topics they are writing on, asking questions and trying to expand their minds on the topic, rather than constraining the student to where there paper is and perfecting what they have. Our job is to take what the student has and to stretch it out a little bit more. From my own life, I can attest to the fact that an engaged writer is a better writer. When people actually feel connected to their papers, they take ownership of it. If we get our students literally interested in their writing, it is bound to improve! College writing classes are all about learning to write well. They are meant to help students find a voice in their writing and maybe even form a writing style that they can use in any of their classes. When a student is able to find a voice, writing becomes an almost natural activity. If we can help students actively participate in their writing assignments, we have done about 80% of our job.
After reading this, I am much more excited about getting to work! Engaging in actual discussion about writing rather than just taking a red pen and a highlighter to a paper seems much more beneficial to both parties. North provides a lot of wonderful insight on how we can improve the student's writing abilities. I imagine if we put these tools to work, we will see a lot of improvement!
Our goal as Writing Center staff should be to help students improve their writing ability, not their specific papers, and certainly not their English abilities. Through developing a relationship with the students, we can get an idea of their initial writing ability, come up with tools they can use to improve their papers, and use specific methods to help them take their abilities to the next level. This main idea focuses on the progression of the student, rather than the perfection of the assignment. When their progression is the focus, we are to hope that as time goes on, their writing will improve. No amount of "fix it" work will teach the student how to write a better paper! As North says, "our job is to produce better writers, not better writing."
The most efficient way to help a student take their writing to the next level appears to be engaging in discussion about their writing. North emphasizes the demand for tutors who will engage their students in the topics they are writing on, asking questions and trying to expand their minds on the topic, rather than constraining the student to where there paper is and perfecting what they have. Our job is to take what the student has and to stretch it out a little bit more. From my own life, I can attest to the fact that an engaged writer is a better writer. When people actually feel connected to their papers, they take ownership of it. If we get our students literally interested in their writing, it is bound to improve! College writing classes are all about learning to write well. They are meant to help students find a voice in their writing and maybe even form a writing style that they can use in any of their classes. When a student is able to find a voice, writing becomes an almost natural activity. If we can help students actively participate in their writing assignments, we have done about 80% of our job.
After reading this, I am much more excited about getting to work! Engaging in actual discussion about writing rather than just taking a red pen and a highlighter to a paper seems much more beneficial to both parties. North provides a lot of wonderful insight on how we can improve the student's writing abilities. I imagine if we put these tools to work, we will see a lot of improvement!
To begin with you have such beautiful writing, your expression and 'engaged' writing style was a pleasure to read. I do agree that we are not a "fix it" shop and should not be viewed as such. The opportunity to work with students, and help them to become better writers in all of their classes, not just the English focused ones, will be where we will see true growth. The idea of helping all students at the school to become better writers, and in turn better learners, is what we are all about. With this in mind we should continue to see growth and need as we continue to educate students and teachers what the writing center is all about. Perhaps our "fresh blood" can help in this endless endeavor.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the lovely complement!
DeleteForgive me for quoting you, but I _love_ this sentence: "If we get our students literally interested in their writing, it is bound to improve!"
ReplyDeleteI agree with this 100%. What I remember from my last Anthropology class, a lot of the students were fascinated in some of the topics they had to do a presentation on, but some of them weren't proud of the presentation they did. I think part of that stemmed from their interest in the topic probably waned the more they worked on it because the excitement probably died. When you said that sentence, all I could think about was how the probing questions suggestion would help tutors help the students dig into their topic for that exciting new take on a topic they were already interested in. When they bite that hook and they can't let go, as you say, they'll have an amazing paper. What a great way to get a student talking about their assignment!
I agree that you have a beautiful writing style. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteI love your comments about students finding their voice. If we can get writers to dig deep and express their ideas, experiences, and opinions, we are doing more than simply helping students become better writers. We are also helping citizens become more confident in expressing themselves which could lead them to become more engaged in society and in the democratic process.