The scariest part about being a writing consultant, I think, is balancing what you think is most important to discuss about a paper with what the writer wants to discuss. My fear is that even if I address issues that are important, the writer won’t be satisfied with the consultation because I didn’t focus enough on the issues they wanted addressed.
In the writing center, I have seen numerous writers come in and ask only for grammar help. That’s all they want, and some of them try to make that very clear because, it seems to me, they know that the consultant will try and make comments about the other portions of the paper. Thus, if you do try and make comments about other aspects of the paper, the writer is not very receptive.
We haven’t read much about this particular issue in class, but we have learned that the goal of the consultant is to better the writer, not the paper. So I know that there are ways to address this issue, but I still feel as though there are many writers who are resistant to the center’s mission and just want their paper fixed.
I guess what this boils down to is that I think my biggest fear is that I’ll fail the writing center in an effort to meet the requests of the writer. With this fear, the challenge is to convince the writer that talking about more than grammar will be beneficial to them in the long run. That’s what the writing center believes right?
I don't think you'll fail: it's the writers who fail to engage.
ReplyDeleteWhat makes this happen? Are the students not interested in their classwork? Did they just come to campus to socialize?
At my grumpiest, I say "we are just a big high school," that that is not fair. As with most thorny issues, a number of factors influence this.
I'd argue that faculty need to give compelling assignments that get students excited. Students need to be realistic about deadlines. And Consultants need to hold their ground in this difficult situation.