Writing Session Example

A Typical Session With a Writing Studio Tutor

Vital Statistics
A tutorial session with a Writing Studio tutor is usually forty-five minutes long. Your tutor will start by asking you some questions about yourself, e.g., your name, class, professor, etc. She will enter this information into our Writing Studio database. The information you provide will help us to understand the needs of our students and how we can serve them more effectively. You will also be helping us to demonstrate the need for Writing Studio services when we request resources for its survival. Your information is very important to us, and helps ensure that we will continue to be here to help you!

Your Assignment
Next, your tutor will ask you questions about your assignment, essay topic, intended audience, and thesis. She will then ask you how you would appraise your progress on the essay or assignment thus far, and what you consider to be your writing strengths and weaknesses. She will especially want to know what you would like to achieve in your tutorial session. She will let you know if your expectations are reasonable for the session, and if not, she will ask you to pick a few critical areas to work on.

Reading Aloud
Next, your tutor may ask you to read your paper aloud to her. This technique may seem a bit strange to you at first, but it really helps to get you more effectively involved in the revision process. When you read out loud (but NOT when you read silently to yourself), you are more able to pick out your own grammatical and mechanical errors and also hear your words and meanings as if you're part of a more "detached" or neutral member of your audience. In other words, if you can see your paper in a fresher light, you will be able to revise more effectively. One theory that explains why this technique works is because when you read aloud, another part of your brain (opposite to the one that reads silently) comes into play, and you start to rely on altogether different skills.

Feedback and Conversation About the "Big Picture"
Your tutor will more than likely remain silent as you read your paper aloud, but once you have finished, be prepared to take part in some lively conversation. Your tutor will focus on what she felt were the main strengths of the essay and explain what worked well and why. She will tell you which ideas or details need further explanation and why, and perhaps point out some unique and interesting ideas or insights in your essay that could be developed or more precisely put to good use. She will also ask you questions designed to help you clarify your ideas and meanings.

Next, you and your tutor will discuss the organization of your essay, and if at first reading she was able to identify a definite beginning, middle, and end; and how the organization of the essay added or detracted from its meanings. You will notice that your tutor will always try to help you shape your own ideas, not impose hers on you. Her goal will always be to help you realize your own vision for your paper and to help you learn strategies to improve on those areas that need to be strengthened.

Editing Techniques
Your tutor will first work with you on the process of writing, such as on audience awareness, pre-writing, thesis development, support, and organization. If there is time (or this may happen earlier, especially if there is a definite pattern to your errors), she will then work with you on sentence-level concerns such as grammar, mechanics, and usage; especially on your commonly-made errors and on how to spot them. However, if your sentence-level concerns are greater, especially if English is not your first language, she will suggest a self-tutorial software program in grammar and mechanics to help you improve on those weak areas. Since these types of problems will require long-range effort and study on your part, she will consult with the Writing Studio director to help design a learning plan especially for you.

For more information, contact the Writing Studio Director, Kelly A. O'Connor-Salomon.

To schedule a tutoring session, please see the current Writing Studio Hours.