Blog 1: The work of a writing center

The work that happens in a writing center should be student-focused. It requires that tutors check their egos and focus on helping the student writer develop and practice methods that will help them grow as writers. Checking our egos requires tutors to recognize that the session is not an opportunity for them to show off their "superior" knowledge of writing. This means that tutors should avoid leading the session by placing their own thoughts, experiences, or writing preferences onto the student- writer's page. This means that tutors should not harp on apparent errors in organization, thoroughness, or fluency. Tutors need to prompt the writers with questions and statements that will encourage the writer to explore any number of areas-the range of topics from which they could pick, their feelings/knowledge about a topic, their purpose for writing a piece, the techniques that might work best for a piece, the organization of the piece, etc. The session is about helping students develop thinking processes that will help them, not only in the one session, but with future writing endeavors as well. For example, during revision, a tutor might discuss with the tutor the implications of possibly starting from or ending the essay at a different point. This one question can lead to several possibilities for revision (each with its own impact that can be discuseed). This is more effective than the tutor simply telling the student how/what to revise. It requires the student to think about the decisions he/she is making in their writing, to ponder the implications of those decisions, and to choose the best to suit their specific goals. This requires the student to actively think about her work and is a way of thinking that he/she can apply to future writing endeavors.