Jeremiah's discussion about fixing prose errors jump-started my thinking wheels today:
Since I began tutoring in the WCenter last spring, I've been asked a countless number of times whether or not creative writing projects are appropriate texts to bring to tutors on the 4th floor. For a while, I didn't know how to answer: I knew a few of tutors that had felt blindsided by a student with a prose poem or piece of short fiction and didn't want to encourage this uncomfortable situation - and, in turn, didn't encourage the creative writer.
Tutors can rightly feel a little off-kilter when a tutee comes in with a creative text; we each have a genre of two that makes us feel less-than-at-ease when it hits the tutoring table. I imagine a piece of fiction feels for some the same way I feel when a graduate Chemical Engineering student comes into a session with a lab report and tons of detailed diagrams. This uneasiness or unfamiliarity with creative texts/sessions is justified even more by the wide range of genres classified under "creative writing:" From poetry, to prose poetry, to fiction, to creative non-fiction, to song lyrics, to vignettes, to novel chapters, to short stories, to the Avaunt Gard I won't even attempt to classify -- who can keep up with it all?
The fact of the matter is no one is expected to know it all, but just as we proudly possess a working understanding of MLA, APA and Chicago style or have a general sense for what a lab report is 'supposed' to look like, we as tutors may want to expand a bit more and gather a general, working knowledge of the popular creative writing genres. I know this may seem daunting - it certainly does to me, but I feel we owe it to this wide base of URI writers to give it a shot. To visually imagine this shift into CW, envision a ven-diagram with circles representing each of the types of writing we tutor frequently (WRT1-- papers, business writing texts, communications and psych papers, nursing reports). Now picture another circle entering the over-lapping mix - one representative of just yet another realm of writing we'll have basic understanding of (CW). This circle may, say, be faded in color to represent that we don't encounter it as frequently as we do other types of texts - but nevertheless it has a place in the diagram.
Furthermore, I know many of the tutors in the center this semester are personally interested in creative writing, so I feel this may be the URIWCenter's kairotic moment to broaden our joint, WCenter horizon. Of course, partaking in the any of the creative writing discourse communities personally and tutoring a writer from one - even if you're completely familiar with it - are definitely two different things. Sure, an understanding of poetry is definitely going to help a tutor out during a session with a poet - but writing/reading poetry and tutoring a poet are separate endeavors, just as writing an essay and tutoring a student about writing an essay are not identical situations. Like with any writing, the creative writer's process may differ from yours, his or her personal belief about the art may be diametrically opposed to your own, etc. In short: Tutoring creative writing will definitely be eased/facilitated by one's prior knowledge of the subject, but either way we're definitely going to need some outside advice to really get into this successfully.
It is here that things get tricky. I've been researching for a better part of this afternoon and can report with confidence (and disappointment) that there is little scholarship regarding creative writing and writing centers. I did discover that many centers that frequently tutoring writing have a separate Creative Writing Center - schools including Middlebury and Umass conduct business in this manner. I personally do not favor this approach; I like the idea of a WCenter that tackles it all - to the best of their ability. I believe this atmosphere creates a great cohesion - a center that is working to work together with others to discover the answers that do not come easily to them. I also discovered some minimal scholarship, including a powerpoint presentation regarding the topic from Purdue and a large case study documenting tutors' feelings regarding creative writing entitled Tutor Attitudes Towards Tutoring Creative Writing in Writing Centers. Neither of the texts answer all of my questions about tutoring creative writing, nor do they raise any other particularly exciting ones. Nevertheless, they are worth a glance. (Note: The second article is super-tutor based in its findings, fyi.)
I will keep researching this topic in the future. I'm curious how you guys feel about getting a little cozier and intimate with creative writing - please comment and let me know! I know there are plenty of URI creative writers who would be thrilled to know they have a place to get some advice on their work.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
First Week
I had my first week of tutoring this week. It was a little nerve-wracking at first. There's definitely something to be said about fostering a writing community in the writing center, especially since I've found I have a lot of free time to do work and get to know other tutors. I've only had 2 appointments so far, and 1 unofficial appointment helping Amanda. My first tutee came into the writing center with very little work done and with little understanding of the assignment. I soon realized that I barely understood the assignment either. Rather than accept the poor prompt and move on to the girl's writing, I was stuck with the vague-ness of the assignment sheet. It made me mad because if I don't understand the assignment, how can I help someone write a paper for it? I did the best I could, though, and stressed that she e-mail me when she had more done with the paper - which she did the next night.
With the session I helped Amanda with, I can see why EWC has a chapter about time in it. It is so easy to go over time because you want to make sure that a tutee has a good experience and walks away believing that we have helped their writing rather than wasted their time. Amanda and I spend 50 minutes with the girl, something we could only do because we didn't have any other appointments. I think it will be hard for me to just stop a session only because 30 minutes is up--especially if the session doesn't naturally come to an end at this time.
With the session I helped Amanda with, I can see why EWC has a chapter about time in it. It is so easy to go over time because you want to make sure that a tutee has a good experience and walks away believing that we have helped their writing rather than wasted their time. Amanda and I spend 50 minutes with the girl, something we could only do because we didn't have any other appointments. I think it will be hard for me to just stop a session only because 30 minutes is up--especially if the session doesn't naturally come to an end at this time.
A First First
I had my first tutee on Tuesday! I celebrated, as advised, but with a peanut butter milkshake and, as I sipped, I thought about the flutter of the butterflies in my stomach in the first few minutes of the session. It made me think of trickster (and I am deliberately not capitalizing the term) and of the openness of those few first moments before perceptions begin to solidify into recognitions. All seemed so open to possibilities. And then, I started reading, and trying to make sense of a text as rapidly as possible, and worrying a bit about the time, about whether it was going to be well spent and how much of it there was, and ... You get the idea. I would like to be at the point at which my internal time measuring device is capable of indicating how far into a session I am, which will probably happen at some point. I would like to be "there" because I would like to keep that fluttering openness, that being on the verge of something, sort of suspended between all of my (self?) (knowledge?) (expertise?) and the unknown (for lack of a more precise term), a non-space of unactivated assumptions. All of this is to say that I enjoyed this first encounter very much, that it contextualized trickster, that it incited a desire for experimentation. Of course, I suspect that the student's level of writing command, which was rather high, contributed in one way or another. But even that, at some point, I think and hope to be right, might not be of consequence. Either way, I thought I should share this first moment with you, a moment the intensity of which continues to reverberate, as you can see, two days later.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Reflections on the first week...
I was hoping to actually post this to the blog yesterday during my session, but I have been having a simply awful time trying to connect to the internet (anyone else having problems/issues with laptop connections?). It actually interfered with my last session a bit, as the tutee had all of his potential online sources for an argumentative essay saved in his bookmarks and it took him 10 minutes to be able to connect and access. This semester I have simply been plagued by technology problems!
So I have had a really great first week of tutoring! My first tutee of the semester came in with a draft of his literacy narrative for WRT 104 and it happened to be about a very positive experience he had with one of the writing tutors last year. Since he was lacking some vivid details, I took advantage of actually being in the space where his narrative occurred and pushed him to describe the WC, what resources we had, the feeling he gets from the physical space, and even the elevator ride up to reception. He looked at me like I was crazy for asking him what he heard in the center and tried to wiggle out of it with a gruff “nothing” but the clickety-clack of computer keys and the hum of our always present window fan just made me more persistent.
I also have had one repeat customer over the past 2 days. I always like return customers because you can actually establish a routine and get to know their individual process in that you can’t predict with newbies. I was also thinking about how return customers really play a role in the WC community. Sure, we are a community of tutors, of writers, of peers, but for those tutees who keep coming back to the center, such as the young man who wrote his literacy narrative about his first visit to the WC and this new repeat customer, we are also building a type of community. For some, we may just be a service (god-forbid an editing service!) but for those who keep coming back we are a part of their lives and a part of their support system here at URI.
So I have had a really great first week of tutoring! My first tutee of the semester came in with a draft of his literacy narrative for WRT 104 and it happened to be about a very positive experience he had with one of the writing tutors last year. Since he was lacking some vivid details, I took advantage of actually being in the space where his narrative occurred and pushed him to describe the WC, what resources we had, the feeling he gets from the physical space, and even the elevator ride up to reception. He looked at me like I was crazy for asking him what he heard in the center and tried to wiggle out of it with a gruff “nothing” but the clickety-clack of computer keys and the hum of our always present window fan just made me more persistent.
I also have had one repeat customer over the past 2 days. I always like return customers because you can actually establish a routine and get to know their individual process in that you can’t predict with newbies. I was also thinking about how return customers really play a role in the WC community. Sure, we are a community of tutors, of writers, of peers, but for those tutees who keep coming back to the center, such as the young man who wrote his literacy narrative about his first visit to the WC and this new repeat customer, we are also building a type of community. For some, we may just be a service (god-forbid an editing service!) but for those who keep coming back we are a part of their lives and a part of their support system here at URI.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
The "D" Word or "Diversity"
As you all know, tomorrow is the meeting date we've chosen to dedicate to discussions on diversity. This is a particularly difficult topic for our community to discuss. In fact, it is an amorphous and messy thing for any group to take up.
One of the issues that "diversity" raises as a topic is, ironically, that it is far more than merely topic-al. It implies, in other words, that there are things that are to do with difference and other things that are exempt -- they do not fall in line under that particular topic.
We might even recall a related, pervasive, and rather peculiar assumption in a variety of academic and extracurricular or even private settings: diversity means raceclassgender in general and blackpoorgay specifically. I suppose we all recognize the conflation going on in these instances. Perhaps this sentiment is to blame for smart people with good intentions offering up ideas on diversity that are of the "how I will accept and help those others" variety.
However, can any one or any thing or any place or any time really opt out of diversity? Can any piece of the material world say that it is a starting point? Can we simply claim a neutral space where diversity is a non-issue because we do not, for example, have any people with visible marks of being other than mainstream? And how do we define mainstream, anyway?
A related matter: at times, one might hear something like, “I’m sensitive to issues of diversity,” or “issues of diversity interests me,” or “I’m interested in increasing the diversity of our staff.” These are loaded and highly problematic statements to be sure. And though it is difficult to admit, these are among the very best of the statements I’ve heard on diversity. They stand in due to a lack of a better something else.
I want to suggest here that diversity is the term we ought to use to draw attention to heterogeneity over and against originality. We are not all the same, and this is not very profound or surprising. However, living in a late capitalist age in which narcissistic expressionism appear to be the dominant mode, I suppose we feel the need to devote meetings to diversity in order to offer space to reflect on the ways we are different and not ways in which we are better. We are special, maybe, but not all that remarkable. There are things we owe to each other and yet nothing is really owed to any one of us. There is no clean line that separates me from you from they, but there is difference nonetheless. Our work as tutors should linger in the tension of this impossibility – in a space where it becomes possible to live differently. I think the McIntosh reading is, therefore, appropriate not because it brings up issues of race and racism. This ought not to be the meeting where we only admit or deny our privileges, though that could be nice. Instead, I find value in McIntosh’s implicit call for more humility, more understanding, more thoughtfulness, and more love – these things all require less ego and more responsibility.
I tend to believe that we are highly diverse from day-to-day; our identities, I’d say, are complicated and inconsistent performances. If we are giving our attention to diversity, we are honoring the ways in which we cannot entirely know ourselves or others; we are allowing for ellipses that go un-interpreted; we are giving our selves and others space to perform without judgment…
One of the issues that "diversity" raises as a topic is, ironically, that it is far more than merely topic-al. It implies, in other words, that there are things that are to do with difference and other things that are exempt -- they do not fall in line under that particular topic.
We might even recall a related, pervasive, and rather peculiar assumption in a variety of academic and extracurricular or even private settings: diversity means raceclassgender in general and blackpoorgay specifically. I suppose we all recognize the conflation going on in these instances. Perhaps this sentiment is to blame for smart people with good intentions offering up ideas on diversity that are of the "how I will accept and help those others" variety.
However, can any one or any thing or any place or any time really opt out of diversity? Can any piece of the material world say that it is a starting point? Can we simply claim a neutral space where diversity is a non-issue because we do not, for example, have any people with visible marks of being other than mainstream? And how do we define mainstream, anyway?
A related matter: at times, one might hear something like, “I’m sensitive to issues of diversity,” or “issues of diversity interests me,” or “I’m interested in increasing the diversity of our staff.” These are loaded and highly problematic statements to be sure. And though it is difficult to admit, these are among the very best of the statements I’ve heard on diversity. They stand in due to a lack of a better something else.
I want to suggest here that diversity is the term we ought to use to draw attention to heterogeneity over and against originality. We are not all the same, and this is not very profound or surprising. However, living in a late capitalist age in which narcissistic expressionism appear to be the dominant mode, I suppose we feel the need to devote meetings to diversity in order to offer space to reflect on the ways we are different and not ways in which we are better. We are special, maybe, but not all that remarkable. There are things we owe to each other and yet nothing is really owed to any one of us. There is no clean line that separates me from you from they, but there is difference nonetheless. Our work as tutors should linger in the tension of this impossibility – in a space where it becomes possible to live differently. I think the McIntosh reading is, therefore, appropriate not because it brings up issues of race and racism. This ought not to be the meeting where we only admit or deny our privileges, though that could be nice. Instead, I find value in McIntosh’s implicit call for more humility, more understanding, more thoughtfulness, and more love – these things all require less ego and more responsibility.
I tend to believe that we are highly diverse from day-to-day; our identities, I’d say, are complicated and inconsistent performances. If we are giving our attention to diversity, we are honoring the ways in which we cannot entirely know ourselves or others; we are allowing for ellipses that go un-interpreted; we are giving our selves and others space to perform without judgment…
Sunday, September 20, 2009
The Aesthetics of Community
Two discussions from last week's orientation and Wednesday meeting, each seemingly independent of one another, have prompted this post: A discussion of the Writing Center as community and Cathryn's requests for personal photographs. Many of the tutors expressed an interest in various definitions of community, ranging from a sort of writer's salon to suggestions for how we can make our physical WC space "feel" more like a community. In short, each of the suggestions and opinions is in the larger conversation of creation; any of these endorsed definitions of community will need to be cultivated, established, made.
In combining this reality with Cathryn's call for photos, I've developed a suggestion: A group photo of the WC tutors. In mulling over the many ideas of "community" contributed to the orientation's discussion, this is my first idea for/towards creating this community - start with the aesthetics. In addition to each of our additional headshots on the board, a group shot of the tutors could be a nice, community-creating visual touch.
That's my idea for the day -and to all the photo-phobics: I, too, dislike having my picture taken as much as the next tutor, but I think taking one for the community would be a nice gesture and a great, small step towards cultivating our WC community. One small step for WC tutors, one ...slightly larger step for the WCC (Writing Center Community)!
In combining this reality with Cathryn's call for photos, I've developed a suggestion: A group photo of the WC tutors. In mulling over the many ideas of "community" contributed to the orientation's discussion, this is my first idea for/towards creating this community - start with the aesthetics. In addition to each of our additional headshots on the board, a group shot of the tutors could be a nice, community-creating visual touch.
That's my idea for the day -and to all the photo-phobics: I, too, dislike having my picture taken as much as the next tutor, but I think taking one for the community would be a nice gesture and a great, small step towards cultivating our WC community. One small step for WC tutors, one ...slightly larger step for the WCC (Writing Center Community)!
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Welcome back!--and calendar
Welcome back--or welcome, as the case may be--to the Writing Center at URI. This is going to be a good year.
We'll be doing a lot of work with this blog this year, but there's one thing here that is already new. Under the "Useful Links" heading at right, I have included a new link to our semester calendar. This calendar lists both important dates (e.g., Thanksgiving Break) and staff meetings and staff meeting topics.
We'll be doing a lot of work with this blog this year, but there's one thing here that is already new. Under the "Useful Links" heading at right, I have included a new link to our semester calendar. This calendar lists both important dates (e.g., Thanksgiving Break) and staff meetings and staff meeting topics.
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