My second time at the writing center, my observation did not go as i thought it would. I could not hear the tutor at all, and let me remind you i was sitting right behind her. Her voice was not loud and clear like i had hoped it would be. The fact that right from the beginning i had noticed that, i was already wanting to leave the observation, but of course did not.
As i continued observing the "quiet tutor" i did notice that she read over the essay before starting to give any feedback. Perhaps i did hear the student speaking clearly so i understood what she was trying to get help on which was, grammar and corrections on her paper. There were a few good things about the tutor and i wont lie. She did look over the students paper more than once and checked for grammar errors as well as punctuation. Some of the students sentences were being used as the past tense and the tutor pointed out that it was not the right thing to do for the sentence she had. She of course did not write on the students paper but allowed the student to make the corrections and take notes.
Another good thing about the tutor was that she did give the student specific ideas to expand her writing on, even though i could not hear what those ideas were. The tutor told the student that the more details she had, the better her writing piece would be and i strongly agree on that.
This observation was a very different one compared to my last one. I did learn a lot of things from this observation and one thing that i learned was to be LOUD and CLEAR. I am glad that i had the chance to experience this so when i begin tutoring a student, i know i would have to be loud and clear.
As a tutor, I believe one of the most important things to show in enthusiasm for what you're reading. If the tutor is quiet and shy, I wouldn't feel as comfortable opening up or discussing my thoughts and ideas as comfortably as I would with a louder, more encouraging tutor. However, I think its great that despite that she wasn't loud, she was able to get the student to expand on their ideas and produce a better paper than what they originally came in with.
ReplyDeleteMy second experience observing was similar as far as volume and concentrating efforts on "lower order concerns" (McAndrew & Reigstad, 2001). In fact, the more posts I read and conversations I have with others the more it seems like a theme. This is pretty scary considering I take every paper to the writing center before I hand it in. It could be that this is why people ask for specific tutors by name.They want to make sure their time is well spent and the paper is being improved on all fronts.
ReplyDeleteMy second experience was extremely similar to yours. She did speak in a very low volume but I was still able to hear what she was saying, although I would have preferred her to have been louder. The tutor I observed concentrated on LOC's due to the professors request which I feel was understandable. The thing I took away from my observation aside from being loud and clear as you have stated, was to be very encouraging and to cooperate with the student. I hope you continue to have many more different experiences because that will shape you into the great tutor I'm sure you will be. :)
ReplyDeletevalbona, first I want to say its extremely hard to read your blog because of the microscope size of the font and the camouflaging color. Secondly, It is sad that this time around the observations did not go so well. But, we learn from others mistakes so it is good you know how it feels when the tutor is so quiet. It is nice that she commented on some of the good parts of the writing so the student wouldn't be too discouraged. <3
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