Heather -- Blog Post 9

I think it is imperative that writing center staff pursue writing center-specific research, and that writing centers prioritize and encourage their tutors to engage in research. The way we learn what works, across a broad field, is by asking questions about specific processes and then examining them more closely. For me, the idea of considering how incarcerated students interact in and benefit from a writing center environment is a fascinating one. Resources are sorely limited and there are many challenges when offering access to higher education in a carceral setting: no access to email or other modes of communication, few settings in which to have a private conversation or consultation, and students are often required to wait significant amounts of time in order to ask clarifying questions or get feedback from an instructor.  The ability to work with a writing center tutor can yield substantial gains for an incarcerated student. Asking questions about the positioning of tutors in college programs offered in prisons and distinguishing what types of interactions prove most beneficial to incarcerated students would be very valuable information.

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