A few days ago, I was in the line at the salad bar at D-hall. I was in a rush to eat before my 1:30 class, and was periodically--and by periodically, I mean in 30 second intervals-- checking my cell phone to monitor the time. I somehow managed to tune in to the conversation of the two girls in front of me. It went something like this:
Girl 1: "I can't eat dinner with you tonight because I have to go to the writing center for one of my papers. My professor is forcing us all to go."
Girl 2: "Wow, that sucks. So, what are they going to do? Proofread it for you?"
Girl 1: "See, that's what I don't get. The only tutor I could get that fit in with my schedule isn't even majoring in the subject area of my class. I don't understand how she's supposed to help me at all."
So, naturally, as a prospective writing consultant currently taking the ENG 383 class, I so gladly (but politely) interjected.
"It's not about proofreading--the writing consultants mainly check for your style and how you formulate and organize your ideas. They basically help you out with the writing process itself regardless of the assignment or its subject area."
And thus, the day was saved. I felt like I had enlightened those fellow Richmond students to go out into campus and enlighten others. If only the world was so perfect.
I got to thinking that perhaps that is the general perception of many University of Richmond students. Many think that it's a proofread headquarters, where we thoroughly check their grammar and spelling and make sure full stops and commas are exactly where they need to be.
How many of these people are shocked when they come for their first Writing Center Appointment and find that this perception is wrong?
How can we prevent this from being the assumption of UR students?
You raise a good point. At my previous college the Writing Consultants actually made a short 5-10 minutes presentation in several of my classes about the role of the Writing Center and how a Writing Consultant can help. Maybe that is something that we should implement here at UR?
ReplyDeleteThat's an excellent idea, Allie! Perhaps incorporating a session on the Writing Center (as well as the Speech and Academic Skills Centers) similar to the sessions we receive on the Honour Code into first-year orientation could make a remarkable difference in student perceptions of the writing center.
ReplyDeleteI agree! It would be great if we could find a way to communicate the actual purpose and role of the writing center. Introducing students to the idea during orientation would be an effective way!
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