This is a training I did for the 2024 consultants and future ones as well.
This is a crash course in Writing Lab pedagogy. If anything feels under-explained, do some research and share it with the Writing and Communication Center (WCC) director! This could also be an opportunity for professional development for everyone!
Your Top Priority: Putting the Writer Before the Grade
As you work with students, try to promote writing habits and tricks that will help the writer as they progress through college and through their career. Despite how many engineers are at this school, most will have to write in their field: proposals, write-ups, presentations, formal requests, and even emails will have to be written by most STEM employees.
But Why Should We Put the Writer Over the Paper?
It is important to think about the writer as a person who needs to develop writing skills, not someone who needs an A on their paper. The reason why? Because you will be a greater help if you offer them more ways to make writing easier, more efficient, and more understandable. As Stephen North puts it in his somewhat legendary piece, The Idea of a Writing Center (1984):
“[In] a writing center the object is to make sure that writers, and not necessarily their texts, are what get changed by instruction. In axiom form it goes like this: Our job is to produce better writers, not better writing. Any given project–a class assignment, a law school application letter, an encyclopedia entry, a dissertation proposal–is for the writer the prime, often the exclusive concern. That particular text, its success or failure, is what brings them to talk to us in the first place. In the center, though, we look beyond or through that particular project, that particular text, and see it as an occasion for addressing our primary concern, the process by which it is produced.” (p. 438, emphasis added).
North explains here why we look at the process: even if the student is focused on the class, the grade, and getting the appointment over with, they should leave the center with more resources, more tactics, and a good feeling about writing in the future.
Additionally, beyond simply helping the writer, having your focus on the writer instead of the specific writing keeps your writer from taking the advice on the draft using your words instead of their own, and plagiarizing their work. Discuss process instead of product, and you’ll be in the clear.
How Should I Approach a Consultation?
There are two main ways to address a student’s work: the directive way and non-directive way. Directive is when you directly point out issues or concerns, whereas non-directive uses indirect ways to approach an issue in writing. Historically, Writing Labs have outlawed being direct in tutoring sessions, but recent Writing Lab pedagogy embraces directive tutoring.
There is no strict guideline for which method to use, but here is a general guide:
| Situation | When to be Non-Directive | When to be Directive |
| Working with an average student on an average paper | As often as possible; try to engage your writer with the content so you can be sure they’re learning to be a better writer. | Simple grammar mistakes, when there are communication issues, etc. |
| Working with a student who is required to come in by their professor | I would default to non-directive. Students who are required typically wish for you to do the work, so a non-directive approach will help the student learn. | Simple grammar mistakes, when there are communication issues, etc. |
| Working with an international student | When looking into a grammatical or structural issue you’ve already discussed. | Default to directive. If you are not direct in your help, confusion may happen. Being clear with your communication is the most important part. |
Non-Directive
This is the classic Writing Center style of tutoring. There are many benefits to this method, namely it forces the writer to put things into their own words and makes them work for the learning experience. Much pedagogy outlines this idea and further concludes that this method also helps the writer actually learn what you’re trying to teach them. If you simply answer their question, they might not give a second thought as to why, which is intuitively taught when you use non-directive methods.
Non-directive tutoring can sound like the following:
- “Something in this sentence feels off to me as a reader.”
- “Why did you use this approach?”
- “What does it say in the assignment guide?”
- “Speeches are hard sometimes. Is there a way to streamline this process?”
- “Why don’t you write for a bit and we can return to this in a second once you have your thoughts on paper.”
- “Is there another way to do this?”
Directive
This is a somewhat controversial way of tutoring in the Writing Lab community, but still a valid approach. There are times when not pointing out an issue directly can create barriers to communication. There are many situations that might require a direct “point out”, namely working with ELL students. When learning a new language, or if you need a simple question answered, it can be frustrating to work with someone who won’t answer your questions. Lori Salem (2016) looks into this topic with the following quote:
“Orthodox writing center pedagogies for working with grammar and correctness are similarly slanted toward privileged students. Treating grammar/correctness as a “lower order” or “later order” concern, means that frequently we do not address grammar much (or at all) in our tutoring sessions. For privileged students who grew up in homes where a white, middle-class version of English was spoken, this approach might be okay. But affecting a genteel disregard for grammar concerns makes no sense if we are working with English language learners, with students who spoke a less-privileged version of English at home, or with any student who feels anxious about grammar. If we regularly dismiss or defer (“later”) students’ questions about grammar, this doesn’t make those questions go away, nor does it fundamentally alter the terms on which grammar is understood in the university or in society. It simply leaves students up to their own devices to deal with those questions.” (p. 163, emphasis added).
A major tool in your toolbox that you cannot forget is to use hedges, or what I call “downplayers”. Hedges are words or phrases that “downplay” or minimize the impact of the phrase. Some hedges include the following:
(image links to source, image is also transparent so you might not be able to see it in dark mode)
Directive tutoring can sound like the following
- “To use an oxford comma, you add a comma to the second to last list item.”
- “Maybe we should take another look at this sentence. I think the paper could explain this more efficiently.”
- “No, I don’t think that comma works here. Maybe let’s try re-writing the sentence.”
- “I see what you mean, this paragraph doesn’t fit with the rest of the paper’s flow. Maybe we can move it to somewhere else in the paper?”
- “I like your presentation, but I think tidying up the formatting will help. This is how I typically do it…”
A Blend of the Two
It is important to pay attention to the writer and see what approach will work best, and it’s usually something between directive and non-directive. There are times when the student might not understand the concepts without a direct correction. Truesdale (2007) explains the ideas of blending directive and non-directive tutoring styles:
“In other words, instead of conducting either a directive or non-directive session, tutors should feel comfortable conducting a session that uses both in a complementary manner. As a tutor, the more I read tutor theory, the more I felt pressured to choose between the directive and non-directive camps. Making such a decision was very difficult for me because I strongly believed in the merits of each approach. Expectedly, when I tried to exclusively use a single approach in a session, I became frustrated when I could not use the other, more appropriate approach” (p. 8).
Truesdell emphasizes here that there are times when one process is better than the other. Barring yourself from using directive or blended styles might produce better writers at times, but each student is different and has different needs.
Blending will happen when you are on the border of two situations; use your discretion for when to use which type.
Why Can’t I Say It’s a Good Paper?
Using words such as “good” or “bad” implies that the student’s work has a quality either above or below the average paper that you’ve worked with. We also can’t guarantee a good grade on a paper, which is what calling it good can imply. Students will take your positive comment as an assessment on the paper, something that we want to avoid. Lori Salem (2016) further discusses how to reframe the grade mindset for students:
“To that end, when students explain that they chose to visit because they want to get a good grade (‘a better paper’), we counter by offering them an opportunity to invest in the longer term project of writerly development (‘be a better writer’)” (p. 151).
When students want to know how you might grade their paper use Salem’s advice and mention your goal is to make them a better writer, not assess their writing.
The Student’s Emotions That They Bring to the Session
Writers might be stressed, anxious, or irritated when they come to their appointment, especially if it is required. Your job as a consultant is to do the following:
- Help them with their paper when they are anxious about their grade
- Listen to their concerns
- Ease the tension they might have around writing
Each of these will have to deal with a writer’s emotions at some point in a consultation. Missouri S&T is a unique school that informs a large body of STEM students, most of whom think they are bad writers. Whether or not they’re indeed a bad writer, each student deserves to be validated and to feel like you’ve put them on the right path for writing. Driscoll and Wells (2020) explain the types of situations you might come across in the following quote:
“Every tutor can tell stories about one of those sessions: the distraught student who is upset because of her professor’s comments and how she been given a C and had never gotten one before. The extremely frustrated student who has worked himself into writer’s block and it takes most of the forty-five-minute tutorial to break through his frustration. The confused student who has no idea what to do and spends the first part of the session overwhelmed with his head in his hands saying ‘I don’t know. I just don’t know.’ These are common, everyday experiences for writing tutors not only because college can be emotionally taxing, but also because writing centers may be perceived as places students can go to feel better as often as they are perceived as places to get help with writing.”
Students who are required to go to the WCC might have strong emotions that require attention; emotions might get in the way of having a successful consultation. The big thing is to imagine you are in your writer’s place: How would you like to be talked to in this situation? How can you support the student in the kindest way possible? Driscoll and Wells (2020) further elaborate on this with the following:
“Considering the role of the ‘whole person’ in the writing center allows us not only better writing center practitioners, help writers produce better writing, but also helps us produce better writers and better people. Emotions, emotional labor, and self-care practices are certainly critical to the work writing centers do—and we encourage the field to think about some of this work as part of the professional core of our practice.”
Driscoll and Wells make a strong point here: we need to successfully overcome anxiety and other strong emotions before we can give the writing itself the proper attention it needs. Since writing is a personal and sometimes sensitive act, we need to be aware of the writer’s feelings.
On the other hand, if you recognize that the student is struggling with mental health, you might need to intervene. If you think there might be a concern, reach out to Dr. Gale or leave a comment on the CRF and she can handle the situation from there. Here is the Missouri S&T Well-Being Quick Reference GuideLinks to an external site. so you can assess your situation. There is also a physical copy by the front desk.
Confidentiality
Another aspect of putting the writer before the assignment is to make sure that you never share specific details discussed or written about with those outside of the WCC.
Imagine that you have scheduled a tutoring session with an acquaintance you’ve talked to a few times to look over your paper. During your session, you told your tutor that you were really tired because you wrote the paper super last minute because your pet had passed away. Would you be comfortable with the friends of your acquaintance knowing that your pet passed away? What about other sensitive information that might not seem sensitive at first?
Additionally, keeping any information about living situations, classes they’re taking, or professors they like/dislike to yourself is necessary. While this information seems harmless, this information could impact the writer in a range: from bad comments making it back to the professor to putting the individual in harm’s way. Keeping these things within the WCC walls will keep students safe.
Tutoring Sessions Versus Editing or Grading Services
Unlike most Writing Labs, our WCC is joined with the graduate editor. This does NOT mean that we are editors; it can be tempting to simply look over a draft, but that is not in line with our goal to make better writers. Editing might help with a grade, but it is not sustainable for a writer long-term. Truesdell further explains with the following quote:
“In other words, a tutor is not supposed to be an editor who simply tells the writer what is wrong with a paper and how to fix it; instead, the tutor should foster a collaborative learning experience in which both parties equally contribute to what Kenneth Bruffee terms the ‘conversation of mankind.’” (Truesdell, 2007, p. 7)
The bottom line is if the student wants to have their paper edited, they should go to an editor, not to a writing lab consultant. Kindly remind your student that you are a tutor and wish to help them become the best writer they can be. Harris explains how you might go about these issues with a writer:
“Accordingly, they may initially be irritated or unhappy that the tutor’s role is not to proofread the paper for them or tell them how to get a higher grade. But given a few minutes of tutorial conversation, students begin to see that the tutor can help them learn how to proofread or how to fix their papers. Every tutor has tales of students who turn sullen, morose, or even hostile when they learn that the tutor isn’t a free editor, but who eventually calm down and join in the conversation about strategies they can use” (Harris, 1995, p. 29).
If your student is still indignant about having their paper edited/looked at once you have fully explained to your writer what our services provide, talk to the WCC director about the student or leave a comment in the CRF and she can handle the rest.
Cited on this Page
Stephen North: The Idea of a Writing Center
Lori Salem: Decisions…Decisions: Who Chooses to Use the Writing Center?
Tom Truesdell: Not Choosing Sides: Using Directive and Non-Directive Methodology in a Writing Session
Dana Lynn Driscoll & Jennifer Wells: Tutoring the Whole Person: Supporting Emotional Development in Writers and Tutors
Irene Lurkis Clark: Collaboration and Ethics in Writing Center Pedagogy
Muriel Harris: Talking in the Middle: Why Writers Need Writing Tutors
Teague McElroy's Digital Portfolio 