John Sheridan Blog Post 1



1.     Some passages in the chapters implied that it is wrong to complement students’ work too heavily, but also called upon tutors to be encouraging toward writers. This was confusing and potentially problematic. Is it wrong or problematic to complement a student’s work if you think it is really good?
2.     If students want to practice grammar on their own time, what writing center resources should I direct them to?

Comments

  1. Carol SeverinoJanuary 23, 2019 at 9:44 AM

    You're right. It is confusing. There's a lot of mixed messaging in tutor education, some of which I'm guilty of myself. It's actually very important to praise as long as you praise specific things the student did well so they can do it again. So justify and give a reason for your praise. Use "I like the way you" ______________ and fill in the blank. I like how you incorporated the points you'll make later into your thesis. I like the way you integrated your source material here. I like the way you used that metaphor. Good job on a conclusion that answers the "so what" question.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Carol SeverinoJanuary 23, 2019 at 9:48 AM

    The "go to" source for everything grammatical is the Purdue OWL. They have a search box where you can write in the feature: e.g. subject-verb agreement, sentence fragments, etc. and get rules, examples, and exercises. Students can also take out a handbook from our back shelves by filling out a borrower's card at the front desk.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Blog Post #8 (Ian)

Interesting take on that timeless grudge match been academic and creative nonfiction, but cringed at Goedde's frequent use of what I'll call The Other B-Word, which raised its own separate set of questions for me about how we (as tutors) shape the way our students write about racism... Though the use of this word felt central to Loraine's story - and was further complicated by Loraine's own Mexican-American heritage - it was also impossible for me to imagine Goedde parroting it with the same zeal if, say, this had been a story about Loraine using the N-word, or any number of other xenophobic slurs. Not sure if others reacted similarly, but felt noteworthy given the particular necessity (and thorniness) of having students write about race at a place as overwhelmingly white as the University of Iowa. As for comparing this nonfiction case study to the more academic studies we've previously consulted, I feel like the pros and cons basically mirror those raised by Goed
Read more

Blog Post #1

Reading: The University of Iowa Writing Center Tutor’s Guide Question: The University of Iowa Writing Center Tutor’s Guide starts stating the most important goal the Writing Center, “to develop strong writers with positive attitudes toward writing.” I clearly see how through the Writing Center’s writing practices students can grow in confidence to write. Are there any specific practices addressing that vital part of the WC goal of developing positive attitudes toward writing? Reading: The Bedford Guide for Writing Tutors, Chapter 1 & 2 Given that a student’s version of what transpires in a classroom “may be incomplete or even inaccurate (Ryan & Zimmerelli, 2016, 3), how professional and even ethical is to facilitate and somehow promote procedures for registering a complaint (4)?
Read more

JJ 7

I have yet to begin online/asynchronous tutoring but my initial impression (prior to the readings this week) was that the non face-to-face methods is an ersatz tutoring style. I was partially convinced by the readings that there are advantages in a more distanced approach to tutoring that are lacking with in-person sessions. Specifically, there is an element of anonymity associated with online tutoring that I can see appealing to students that may not be confident or are embarrassed about their writing, especially students that are more introverted and non-confrontational. As a tutor, asynchronous tutoring would give me the time to really digest the writing and carefully formulate a response. Sometimes after an in-person session I think back about better ways I could have phrased a certain point but by then, too late. A major take-away from the readings is that I will formulate my responses through the comment feature and rarely using track changes, if at all. I believe that carefully
Read more