BAD IDEAS

ABOUT
TUTORING
CSU Chico ENGL 431

Table of Contents
Table of Contents
AN INTRODUCTORY WORD: 1
TUTORING IS ONLY FOR STUDENTS WHO ARE STRUGGLING IN CLASS 2
DON’T TELL A TUTEE TO REWRITE THEIR WORK 6
INTERVENTIONIST APPROACHES TO TUTORING LEAD TO PLAGIARISM 9
THE TUTOR DOES ALL THE WORK 12
TUTORS SHOULD CLAIM AUTHORITY AS TEACHERS 14
TUTORS ARE THE BEST WRITERS; TUTORS KNOW ALL THE ANSWERS 18
STUDENT WRITERS ARE NOT GOOD WRITERS 22
A TUTOR CAN’T PROVIDE MORE INFORMATION THAN PROFESSORS 24

AN INTRODUCTORY WORD:
Hello! Welcome to ENGL 431’s very own Bad Ideas About
Tutoring. You are about to read a multi-modal, cohesively disjointed

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piece meditating on the practice of tutoring, written with many hours of
experience from various tutors in practice. In the piece, bad ideas about
tutoring will be covered, debunked, and defused. Bad ideas about
tutoring include misplaced notions, stereotypes, common misbeliefs, and
so forth on the practice, and in composing this piece the tutors of CSU
Chico’s ENGL 431: Theory and Practice of Tutoring Writing hope to
shed light on the realities of tutoring. Thank you for choosing to engage
with the piece — we hope that you enjoy.

TUTORING IS ONLY FOR

STUDENTS WHO ARE
STRUGGLING IN CLASS
Audrey M. Rose

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 “I get straight A’s, why should I have to
go to tutoring if I obviously understand
how to pass a class?”(Imaginary
Smartipants) This somewhat egotistical
and self-assured testimony of a student
who intends to avoid the process of
revision and collaboration can appear
impossible to negotiate.
The myth that tutoring is only a crutch for
the ‘unintelligent’ has held authority over generations of students, resulting in empty tutoring
spaces and isolated student voices. In order to effectively debunk the misconception that tutoring
is not useful to students who are already excelling academically and reassert is relevance to all
academic audiences, it is necessary to identify its origin and psychological impact.
Schools are integral to students’ academic and individual development, as their ultimate
purpose is meant to encourage intellectual development and provide assurance for sufficient
employment. The gravity of a final destination designated by an educational institution, and the
expected success within it, can result in high-stress and extremely competitive environments.
These expectations of success create hostile competitiveness amongst students that cause social
or intellectual differences to become conditions of hierarchal isolation that ultimately pit students
against each other. Assigned with the expectations of peers, parents, professors, and future
employers, students bear incredible pressure that can manifest in the fear of failure, a fear that is
presumed to be resolved in isolation. Suppressed anxieties of students often reveal their
subconscious poisoning in the form of negative coping. In Changxiu Shi’s journal on, The
Influence of College Students’ Coping Styles on Perceived Self-Efficacy in Managing Inferiority,
he argues that:
Negative coping styles may manifest as internal repression or external aggression, such as
catharsis or transfer of excitation...Negative coping styles inevitably affect emotional
reactions. The ability to regulate one’s emotions is an important component of emotional
intelligence. (Shi 949)

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 As a result of this repression and an insecure ego, students react aggressively towards
assistance programs like tutoring because they are interpreted as a sign of weakness or
incomprehensibility.
By refusing to seek assistance from tutors and depending entirely on one’s self for
academic success, many students miss the opportunity to develop emotional intelligence and
learn from a collaborative experience.
Tutors, teachers, parents, and peers can begin to redefine the importance and relevance
of tutoring for those who seek enriching educational experiences by deconstructing the
misconception that only the ‘unintelligent’ or ‘unsuccessful’ students need to be tutored. To do
this, it must be acknowledged that learning is not simply done in educational spaces and that
much of our development occurs during our interactions with others. Wenger writes about this
social theory of learning when he describes how, “[Learning] takes place through our
engagement in actions and interactions, but it embeds this engagement in culture and history.
Through these local actions and interactions, learning reproduces and transforms the social
structure in which it takes place” (Wenger 13). Inspiring students to view tutoring as a medium
for learning, as opposed to a correctional facility for confused students can open up new forms of
learning from which anyone can benefit. Working in these collaborative spaces is ideal for
creating and polishing ideas, as they provide the opportunity to be challenged and analyzed by
peers and mentors. Not only is the myth that only the ‘unintelligent’ can learn decomposed by
the evident success of collaborative environments, but tutoring spaces are transformed into areas
that teach students how to learn and build upon their learning despite their level of understanding
of the subject. Tutoring can help anyone better their understanding of the material, absorbing
other perspectives from a tutor can help students identify patterns in their learning or writing that
are unsuccessful. In other words, learning is not simply for the uneducated, but learning is a
process that everyone can benefit from.
Although most people can tolerate and understand the idea that tutoring encourages
learning and it is not an indicator of poor intellect, the myth continues to persist through
perpetuation by students. Students who may feel insecure in their academic ability or
independence continue to enforce this misconception as a result of repression, denial, and self-
preservation. These psychological interferences have developed throughout their educational
career, rooted in the fear of social and intellectual inferiority, students harbor negative coping

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styles that are harmful to their own development, and the development of others whom they may
target. Caught in a slippery slope, students may also continue to perpetuate the idea that tutoring
is a sign of intellectual weakness when they are already feeling inferior in other aspects of their
educational lives. Changxiu supports this idea based on the evidence of the psychological
processes of students when he states, “When there is a high level of self-blame, individuals doubt
and deny their overall abilities” (Changxiu 955). Additionally, students who feel they are already
secure in their academic careers as a result of their intellectual independence may resist tutoring
because they believe it provides them no benefit. When in actuality, they could continue to
expand their knowledge by collaborating and challenging their ideas and processes with the
perspectives of other bright minds.
To redefine the purpose and benefits of tutoring for students who oppose tutoring for
psychological and personal reasoning, it is important that figures of authority and of equal status
perpetuate the truth of its value. If teachers and students communicate the importance and
availability of tutoring, it can become known that the practice of collaboration is not a crutch for
‘unintelligent’ students, but it is a method of improvement that is profitable to students at all
levels within the academic spectrum. Academic institutions and staff members may also consider
creating opportunities for students to sample ‘tutoring like’ environments such as peer review
workshops, office hours, or written commentary embedded in completed assignments that
validate tutoring spaces. By normalizing extracurricular improvement, tutoring can become less
of an exception for those who need extra assistance and more akin to an additional resource for
learning and development.

Works Cited

Shi, Changxiu; Zhao, Xiaojun Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, July,
2014, Vol.42(6), p.949(9)

Wenger, Etienne. “A Social Theory of Learning.” Contemporary Theories of Learning, 2018, pp.
219–228., DOI:10.4324/9781315147277-16.

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DON’T TELL A TUTEE
TO REWRITE
THEIR WORK
Rosie McLucas
My “Bad Idea” about tutoring applies to tutoring, but it also applies to writing in general.
I want to talk about how many writers resist the idea of re-writing their work. They get attached
to their first version of “completed” work and don’t want to start over. It can be hard to
delete/take apart a project and start over. When a project is begun, sometimes it feels like a
journey to a finish line. However, the writing process is recursive and the finish line might be
crossed several times in many different ways. When students begin a paper they might plan to
work on it from one starting point and finish at one end point, possibly all in a single sitting.
When the “finished” (or rather, the first version of finished) project is in hand, considering
revising and rewriting might become a discouragement. It’s easy to get attached to our

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 writing/project just the way it is, and it may feel scary to
edit/revise/delete/rewrite entire portions of it. It is
thoroughly blasphemous to completely rewrite everything
and salvage nothing from the original. Naturally, tutors may
avoid suggesting rewriting or “going back to the drawing
board” to tutees. This taboo can be mitigated by
understanding the writing process/creative process as
something that goes back in time, forward in time, in circles,
and in crossovers with other writers. I invite you to reflect
on this mentality about writing processes by looking at different perspectives from a variety of
voices. You might be able to look at re-writing differently, and approach tutoring sessions with a
new perspective on the value of re-writing.
To start off, writing can be hard and discouraging. It’s hard to know where to start, and
sometimes developing a creative voice and coming up with original ideas can be disheartening
when we are drawing a blank. As Elizabeth Gilbert explains, writers and creators can take the
pressure off their own shoulders by seeing creativity as a resource that isn’t like a switch that can
be turned on and off, but rather a part of our minds that we don’t always have access to.
Accepting this can take away a lot of self-doubt and unconfidence. Elizabeth Gilbert, Your
Elusive Creative Genius (6:38-8:50)
Writers should feel emboldened to collaborate with other writers. If students get the
opportunity to give advice/insight to another writer, they would de facto become a part of
another writer’s process, their sphere as a writer transcends beyond themselves, and thus they are
part of the group. All great works of writing are the results of a combined effort. Tutors should
advise tutees to show their work to others. Tutors should also not hesitate to let their input help
the tutees’ writing grow. Sometimes suggestions can lead to writing portions of an essay for a
student, but if done carefully and intentionally, giving input can help tutees see new ways of
writing and thinking, and tutors can also learn new perspectives of approaching a topic from the
tutee. This kind of observing and commenting adds new dimensions to writing, learning, and
researching. However, writers can get disappointed to have to change their writing to suit the
interests of someone else. As Anne Lamott points out, the publishing/editing process can be at
odds with the writing. Serving the audience may be an important goal, but it isn’t the only goal,

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and trying to write with personal voice and creativity can often be the best, most important
aspect of writing. Anne Lamott, 12 Truths I Have Learned from Life and Writing. (8:33-9:32)
In the article, “Writing Toward the End: Students’ Perception of Doneness in the
Composition Classroom,” by Rob McAlear and Mark Pedretti, the point of knowing when
writing is finished is explored. When written work is “finished” and submitted, one could see it
as the stage in the writing process when the writer is ready for reviews and comments, which
further engage the writer and the text (McAlear & Pedretti 75). Thus, the writing isn’t done when
it is submitted, but rather it is ready for the next step in being presented to its audience. The
writing can continue from this point endlessly, because based on comments received the work
can be interpreted, rewritten, and the recursive process could continue perpetually (88). But
when do students know when they are ready for the submission step? McAlear and Peedretti
argue that student writers feel their writing is “done” when they personally feel it is done (they
are proud of it or they are tired of working on it) or when they think the audience will think it is
“done” (it meets goals/criteria of instructor or publisher/audience) (75). Tutors should get writers
to start asking themselves, “Why do you feel like you are done?” The writer can determine what
goals they have for their writing (to satisfy themselves, their audience, or both) and if they have
met those goals sufficiently for the feedback stage of the writing cycle. As Young-Ha Kim talks
about in his speech, Be an Artist Right Now, writers should be encouraged to write, write, write,
keep writing and do not let doubt and second-guessing creep in. Young-ha Kim, Be an Artist
Right Now (12:15- 13:41)
Don’t be afraid to suggest re-writing if the student has time or the possibility of an
extension. It can be hard to delete, rearrange, re-think, and expand on writing projects, but most
growth comes from exercise, repetition, and challenges. Encourage tuttees to consider rewriting
first drafts in order to see their preexisting ideas in new ways (possibly leading to new, better
ideas?). Ask tuttees how the writing could be different if it was written from a different
perspective (like the opposing audience), how the topic would be written about in a different
context (in the past, in the future, or in another part of the world), or even if a new topic was
chosen altogether. It is definitely a lot to ask, and won’t be right for every situation when
tutoring in college writing centers, but when the option for rewriting is viable you should
encourage tuttees to give it a shot because unknown and beautiful things often manifest when we

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keep pushing our writing to evolve. I hope that the points I have made here serve to inspire
YOU, the tutor/student/writer/reader, to be invigorated to revise.
“Writing Toward the End: Students’ Perception of Doneness in the Composition Classroom,” by
Rob McAlear and Mark Pedretti.

INTERVENTIONIST APPROACHES
TO TUTORING LEAD TO
PLAGIARISM
Alex M. Turcotte
It has come to my attention that in recent years, an apparent fear has developed regarding
plagiarism and education. I attribute this primarily to technological advancements within the last
decade, as the world and all its current information exists under our fingertips (quite literally).
Because of the emphasis on cyber-plagiarism, professors and teachers across the country are
resorting to programs which collect profit from this fear. The program Turnitin, for example, is a
program utilized by colleges and high schools; working by collecting student papers and
comparing the likeness of writing style, paraphrasing and common word/sentence combinations
to other papers within its system. The education system is endlessly searching for ways to

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combat the ever-growing issue of
plagiarism. In return, this fear has created a
dynamic in which educational institutions
doubt the validity of their student’s work.
That being said, how does all of this
affect writing centers? It is a frequent and
conditioned mindset among tutors and those
managing writing centers that directive
approaches to tutoring should only be
utilized in extenuating circumstances.
Although many would argue that this is to
supplement learning and individualism throughout the tutoring session, I argue that this is based
primarily on a fear of helping too much, or providing an environment for students where
plagiarism could happen, regardless of whether it does or not. This sentiment furthers the notion
that students are under no circumstances to be trusted to assist one another in the writing process.
This also implies that if you provide students with the information necessary to improve their
writing directly, or give them the “answers,” they will not engage in the learning process.
Ultimately, this is a false dilemma, whereas there are only two perceived routes to basic tutoring
- an indirect approach (where students engage in learning), or a directive approach (where
students do not engage in learning).
If a student is asked to write an academic paper but does not understand the necessary
conventions of academic writing, they are not capable of producing a functioning draft.
Interestingly, there seems to exist an emphasis on the humanities and the probability of
plagiarism or intellectual property theft. This emphasis has bled into writing centers across the
country, as interventionist approaches to tutoring elicit the fear of plagiarism.
Like any other process-mastered skills, academic writing has conventions which must be
understood before a successful product of this process can be achieved. Supplemental instruction
tutoring exists in varying subjects on college campuses, and mastering these skills or absorbing
this information often requires mentoring outside of professor-student interactions. Education
officials do not speak on these supplemental instruction sessions from an accusatory point of
view, and the inevitable question here is what exactly makes writing centers different?

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 The main aspect of writing centers which differentiate them from other supplemental
instruction settings is that people generally view writing as a strictly subjective expression of
ideas, when this is not the case. Supplemental instruction tutoring often exists among the
sciences of chemistry, physics or biology, whereas the information being presented to students is
accepted scientific, evidence-based logical truths. Regardless of the subjective aspects of writing,
there are still necessary conventions which must be understood, just as there are subjective
explorative endeavors and philosophical questions existing among the sciences. Many of the
accepted rules which we utilize when writing academic papers are taught to prevent plagiarism
from happening. For example, if a student has issues with proper citations, their paper may be
heavily flagged for plagiarism on these plagiarism-detecting programs, when in reality, they
simply did not understand the logistics of proper citation protocol in MLA or APA formatted
writing. Citation logistics as well as the functioning grammar policies which differentiate
between what is considered formal academic writing versus casual first-person narrative are
necessary mechanics which must be understood by students in all fields of formal education.
Further, students whose first language is not English benefit greatly from interventionist
approaches. One cannot expect a student to write a properly cited, grammatically correct paper
when they do not understand the specific mechanisms which dictate a written language which
differs from their own native language. It seems that the suspicion towards using interventionist
approaches to tutoring lessons in these tutoring sessions, but the same principle applies to
students whose native language is English. I’ve seen this in my own experience tutoring - the
cyclical conversations where a tutor tries to drag answers from a student who simply does not
have them. For example, if a student does not understand the proper adjective arrangement in
English, going from opinion to size, then physical quality… then they will not be able to explain
what is wrong with their choice in descriptive word order. Not only is this indirect approach
halting active learning processes for the student, but it has the potential to make the student feel
worse about their writing skills than when they walked into the writing center for help.
To summarize, we cannot expect students to provide answers to questions we ask them if
they haven’t been presented the necessary literary rules they must follow to answer those
questions. Directive approaches are necessary in most sessions from my experience tutoring, and
we must stop the cycle of isolating writing centers from other forms of tutoring where plagiarism
could just as easily occur.

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THE TUTOR
DOES ALL THE WORK
Julye Yang

To begin, I have made a short clip based on an actual event that happened due to the existence of
this bad idea. Click the picture below to watch the video.

Students who have never gotten tutored for writing or have little knowledge about writing tutors
may believe that during the tutoring session, the writing tutor will do all the work alone: read
their paper and make corrections and marginal comments. This idea may have also stemmed
from what they’ve heard their professors say about the services of the writing center. Some
professors think that writing centers are the last stops for their students’ paper—to get
proofreading/editing done. This incorrect idea of how tutoring works can cause students to go

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into the session thinking they can sit back and relax while the tutor “fix-up” their paper. When
students place themselves in this passive position, it creates this situation that doesn’t allow them
to develop skills that they can later build upon. And that is not how tutoring works nor what
tutoring stands for.

Writing tutors aren’t editing machines that you can simply slide your papers to for proofreading
and editing services. A tutor’s goal is to help students generate, organize, revise, and improve
their writing. Tutors care about students’ writing skills more than the paper; tutors want to foster
independent learning. And to successfully do this, there needs to be participation from both
sides. And because every session and student is unique, tutors will have to use different
techniques and valued practices that are relevant and fitting to each session. This may mean a
tutor’s assistance can be more directive or non-directive, or be an almost perfectly balanced
fusion of both, as long as the student is benefiting from it. And students can be expected to be
actively engaged during the session; they should be actively listening, conversing, taking notes,
and thinking! Students and tutors should be working together: students doing their work and
tutors assisting them through it. Tutoring is not a one-man job. Students should go into a tutoring
session ready to collaboratively develop their paper and writing skills.

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TUTORS SHOULD CLAIM
AUTHORITY
AS TEACHERS
Jenessa Ramirez

This past semester, I got the chance to intern and observe in an English 131 writing
workshop class. The class contained ten students and one mentor and was located in the second
story of one of the largest buildings on campus. The classroom had four large circular tables,
each being able to seat five students. The classroom had no windows.
The students spread out around the classroom when it came to choosing their weekly
seats. The far left table contained the same four distracted students. The far right table contained
one student who sat purposely in the corner to be able to observe and face everyone else in the
room. A middle table contained the same two students who squinted at the large smart screen,
which I’m inferring is due to the lack of functioning eyesight. All the students were first
semester freshman, living in dorm rooms and on their own for most likely the very first time.
These students had just had a major adult life culture shock. They now attend school and classes
that will not punish you immediately for not attending, that won’t send you home if you’re
wearing the wrong type of clothing, and will not step-by-step help you edit and revise your one
essay for weeks in order to get the best grade that you can. These students chose to be in this
supplementary class, where they were able to receive that writing mentorship and help on their
essays throughout the semester for any of their classes.
Jazelle was the supreme mentor that was paid to lead workshop and discussion during the
50 minute class time. She was a senior, finishing up her time at Chico State as an English major.
She had a lot on her plate, and she always seemed like she had 20 different things running
through her mind at all times. However, she was always present and engaged in the student’s

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work, questions, and concerns. She was a very good example of the type of peer leader and
mentor that freshman writers need. She never taught, she always asked, and she never assumed.
What I mean by this is that she spoke and responded to these students as if she wasn’t their
teacher, but a peer student that just wanted to help. She led discussion as if she were to be
approaching a group of friends circled in the fourth floor of the library. The work that was being
done was for everyone’s benefits, and she knew that she didn’t need to be some authoritative
figure or some master of knowledge. These freshman students were smart and capable of writing
papers at a college level, they just seeked that extra step and extra peer review for further
revision and clarification on how good writing should be carried out.
If tutors and/or writing mentors taught and led instruction rather than collaborated and
guided discussion, than students wouldn’t receive adequate help that they seeked. In “What
Tutoring is and What Tutoring is not”, an article posted on Chapman University’s blog on
February 9, 2016, author Halina Goetz states that “The main goal of tutoring is to help a tutee to
become a lifelong independent learner. Mimicking the steps shown by a tutor will not help a
tutee become an independent learner and will not help the tutee learn critical thinking skills”
(Goetz). Engaging students to be as involved in their writing and work by asking questions and
diving deeper into how they feel about their writing might lead them into developing methods
and habits in asking themselves these questions as they write in the future.
She always proved to have faith in the students and their skills, even though they might
have not had faith in their own writing skills. She almost always mentioned to me after class
every week, “These students just need to have more confidence in their writing, I mean, they’re
great writers, but they just don’t believe in themselves”. Before every workshop, she began by
asking the student who wrote the essay how they felt about their work on a scale from one to ten.
The average answer was a 6. She went even deeper and asked the students what is going well in
their work. The average answer was paragraphing and format. She then asked the students what
they thought wasn’t going well. The average answer was that they didn’t feel as if they had
enough information, they didn’t cite correctly, or that there were grammatical errors. After
reading the essay out loud and presenting advice about structure, grammar, and content, Jazelle
asked how the students felt about their paper now. The students still graded themselves lower
than they should but higher than before. The students just need more confidence and reassurance
in their writing. Even as an English Major, I still feel as if my writing really isn’t good enough

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either due to the grading and rubric system that pressures students to follow certain rules and
requirements that are usually vague.
This leads into another topic that I learned through observing Jazelle and the students:
although tutors and students may share an equal frustration and understanding about descriptive
grammar rules and formatting options, tutors and students must always respect the teacher’s and
professor’s expectations and requirements of the assignment. In “A Guide For Tutors in the
Rutgers Writing Centers”, a writing tutor manual for Rutgers University in New Jersey,
instructors Mocheal Goeller and Karen Kalteissen state: “Your work complements class work. It
does not replicate or replace it. Teachers must focus primarily on results and what is of
“universal” concern to the group; tutors focus on process and what is of specific concern to the
individual student” (Goeller and Kalteissen). At the end of the day, it’s not the tutor that is
grading the essay, it’s the teacher. If the teacher notices that the expectations of the paper hasn’t
been followed, whether that be through format, point of view, language style, or artistic values,
the teacher might get even more upset or offended due to purposeful lack of direction following.
As a tutor, you should always respect the rubric and the directions that the teacher gives;
and if there are limited directions or no rubric, then ask the student what they believe that the
teacher or professor is looking for in their work and then BELIEVE THEM. Again, as a tutor or
mentor, you are not the teacher so you might not have a lot of knowledge about the class or the
assignment that is being presented. Even if you feel like you may have had a similar class or a
similar assignment, do not assume to approach it the same way that you completed it as a
student. If anything, use your knowledge and experience to guide the student into their own
thought processes and ideas in creating their own work. Jazele would sometimes come across an
assignment or essay that a student came in with that had very vague or hard to understand
directions. Jazele never approached this with frustrations pointed at the teacher or professor for
their lack of providing directions, but turned to the student to ask questions on what they
believed that they needed to achieve in the work.
Tutors should never act like they are authority or the teacher of the student that they are
helping. Tutoring should be a collaborative effort from both parties and should be a recollection
of questions and answers on how to take the next step in making the piece of writing or
assignment completed and proficient enough to turn in. Workshopping should be an analysis of
how the writer or the student feels about their work and why they feel the way that they do.

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 Tutors should never disregard the teacher’s or professors instructions or rubric no matter how
much they disagree with the format, style, whatever. When collaboration and teamwork happens
in a writing center or workshop, all parties should leave feeling respected, satisfied, and as if
they have achieved something.

Works Cited

Goeller, Michael, and Karen Kalteissen. “A Guide for Tutors in the Rutgers Writing Centers.”
Wp/Rutgers.edu, http://wp.rutgers.edu/attachments/article/425/The Task- A Guide for
Tutors.pdf.

Goetz, Halina. “What Tutoring Is and What Tutoring Is Not. - Defining and Choosing a Good, Effective
Tutor.” Schmid College of Science and Technology, 9 Feb. 2016,
https://blogs.chapman.edu/scst/2016/02/09/what-tutoring-is-and-what-tutoring-is-not/.

TUTORS ARE THE BEST WRITERS;

TUTORS KNOW ALL THE
ANSWERS
Brady D. Freitas

For many students who are struggling with a subject in school, people will always say “get a
tutor, they will be able to help you,'' as if tutors are the gatekeepers of knowledge and can resolve

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any problems or concerns that arise. I’m not saying that tutors aren't beneficial and won’t
actually be able to help you. I’m saying that tutors are not computers, who can easily spit out all
the right answers; afterall, tutors are humans who get confused too. I have posited in the past that
my own tutors must know all the answers, otherwise they should not be a tutor. However, after
being on the other side as a writing tutor, I can confidently say that tutors don’t know all the
answers- and that’s okay. Furthermore, being a good writer does not correlate with being a good
tutor; what warrants a successful tutor is someone who can offer support, ideas, and another set
of eyes to a fellow writer who is looking for guidance on a paper or helpful writing techniques.

Below is a dialogue between a writing tutor and their tutee, they are working on a literary
analysis paper. The tutee came in for a tutoring session wanting help with their grammar,
spelling, and punctuation. The tutor wants to help the tutee with these issues, but first
recommends looking at the structure of the paper and more high level/global concerns.

● Tutor: Jill. Tutee: Robert.

Jill: Hello I’m Jill, how can I help you today?

Robert: Well, I really need help with grammar and things like that because my teacher is always
marking me down for it. And I know y’all are such good writers in here you could help.
Jill: Aw thanks, I won an award for best writer this year so I think you’ll be in good hands haha.
Robert: I knew I came to the right place for help. Love me some tutor time ahaha.
Jill: In that case, hopefully I can help you today. Let’s take a seat and see exactly what you need
help with.
Robert: Awesome. Thanks so much. I am currently working on this literary analysis paper on
The Pictures of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde and want to make sure my grammar and stuff is on
point this time haha.
Jill: Haha okay, do you mind if I look at the prompt and requirement sheet for your paper? I
want to make sure that you’re addressing the prompt correctly first before we worry about
grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
Robert: Um, that’s fine. I just want to make sure I have time to get some grammar help, because
I only have 30 minutes before my next class.

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Jill: I understand, but for now let's focus on if you addressed the prompt correctly and if your
paper flow nicely. We do this because it helps us avoid time wasted on grammar, spelling, and
punctuation errors that we might end up changing or erasing anyways, if the flow, structure, or
content of the paper needs changing.
Robert: Alright, got it. I guess we can do that, but I know you guys help with grammar here and
want to make sure I get the help I need today.
Jill: No, yeah, I totally get. Oh, and also, we are open from 8 AM to 5 PM every Monday-
Friday, if you need to come back in the future.
*Jill and Robert focus on reading his paper like Jill wanted, and by the end of reading it, it was
time for Robert to leave for class. Jill concluded that the paper addresses the prompt very nicely
and that next they can work on things like grammar since the high level concerns were dealt with
today.

This tutoring session between Jill and Robert displays a lot of red flags about tutoring and the
stereotype that good writers are good tutors. Robert communicated to Jill that he needed help
“with grammar and things like that” because his teacher was grading him poorly on it. However,
Jill had her own agenda and ideas on how to best help Robert. In the end, Robert did not receive
the help he was seeking when he came in to see Jill. Moreover, Jill’s inability to help Robert as
his tutor shows that the best writers (e.g. Jill winning best writer) are not a guarantee on being
great tutors.

Jill and Robert were a great example in displaying that great writers are not always great
tutors. Now we will look at the tutoring session between Jake and Kiana. Kiana needs help with
a research/argumentative paper about orcas and the cruelty they face in captivity.
● Tutor: Jake. Tutee: Kiana.
Jake: Hi there I’m Jake, how can I help you today?
Kiana: Hi, yeah um I have a paper on orcas I need help with.
Jake: Okay. Did you know what exactly you wanted to work on in your paper?
Kiana: Yeah I need help on researching things about orcas in captivity and how it can support
my argument that orcas should not be kept in captivity.

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Jake: Okay sounds good. I wanted to let you know that I don’t know anything about the cons of
orcas in captivity, but I’ll definitely help research and choose the best evidence for your
argument.
Kiana: That’s totally fine I don’t know that much either, but they are super interesting so I
thought it would be a good topic for my paper.
*Kiana and Jake find evidence for her argument, but she needed to leave for work and said she’ll
be back tomorrow to see if everything looks good.
Jake: Hey Kiana! How’d the paper turn out?
Kiana: I think pretty good, it was so helpful having you help me research and choose what
evidence to use.
Jake: No problem. So what are we working on today?
Kiana: So I finished the paper last night and I just to go over it with you to make sure it all
makes sense, especially my grammar and punctuation. I always seem to struggle with those two
things haha.
Jake: Okay let’s read your paper and see if it needs any fixes.
*Jake and Kiana decide Jake should read the paper because a new set of eyes might be able to
catch an error better than someone what has already read it.
Jake: Okay in the sentence that says “Orcas were one of the largest creatures to live on planet
earth” there is a grammatical error. Can you identify it?
Kiana: Ummm, did I...hmmm I don’t know actually haha.
Jake: That’s okay and afterall that’s what I'm here for, to give you guidance, support, and be
another eye that might catch errors that you might have missed. The problem with the sentence is
that you are using “were”, which is past tense; orcas are still alive, therefore a better alternative
would be “orcas are one of the largest creatures…”
Kiana: Ohhhh yeah, I totally did not see that.
*Jake and Kiana work through her paper and Jake realizes that a common theme in Kiana’s
paper is that she struggles with changing tenses (e.g. like with “were” and “are” from up above).
When she leaves the tutoring session, Jake gives her a worksheet about the different tenses and
how to conjugate the correct forms of different words.

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 Even though Jake didn’t know anything about orcas, he was still willing to help Kiana do
research and find the best evidence that helped support here claim. Tutors are not supposed to
know everything, and Jake is a great example of this. Moreover, writing tutors may even struggle
with things relating to writing that they don’t know; after all writing is an ever evolving process
and there is no peak level of knowledge. Jake is a great tutor because he listens to his tutee and
the things they need help with. Jake offers Kiana another set of eyes, support/resources, and
ideas for her paper exuding qualities of a great tutor.

STUDENT WRITERS
ARE NOT
GOOD WRITERS
Kelsey Ogle

There seems to be a fairly common misconception that student writers are not good writers. This
viewpoint seems to be most commonly held by ESL students and non-English majors. This
viewpoint is harmful to the confidence and aspirations of all student writers who believe this
misconception, but it is especially harmful to ESL students and non-English and non-journalism
majors. Many student writers get it into their heads that because English isn’t their first language
or because they are not students who are studying reading- and writing-heavy subjects like
English or journalism, they simply are not and cannot be good writers like their native English-
speaking, English/journalism-major peers can be.

However, this belief simply is not warranted or accurate. We all must remember that writing is a
form of communication. This semester has really shown me a variety of communication styles
and skills. So many people are held back by their own self-consciousness of their differences that

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can affect their writing that they think they just are not capable of being skilled, effective writers.
His leads to an idea of what I consider to be English supremacy, this idea that people who study
writing intensively in school or who grew up speaking English are inherently better at writing
than those with different areas of study and life experiences. However, there are plenty of good
communicators and good writers who are outside of those parameters but still feel less than and
their confidence really takes a hit because of this misplaced sense of inadequacy because they
weren’t extensively trained in writing or even the English language itself. However, I have seen
this semester, tutors and tutees get somewhat stuck on how to word something, and sometimes
the non-writing-specialized, ESL tutees would actually be the ones to come up with the clearest
way to get their point across. Sometimes the tutors get so caught up in their mastery of English
and writing that simplicity and clarity goes by the wayside and the tutees can sometimes lead us
back to basics, in a good way. Those who are not immersed in English and writing many times
find it easier to communicate more effectively and clearly—even if not exactly correctly. There
have been many times this semester where I have been refreshed by the ideas of tutees who are
not overly bogged down by over-complicated language and this in itself is a mastery of writing
and English, just in a different, oftentimes more clear and effective way.

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A TUTOR CAN’T PROVIDE
MORE INFORMATION
THAN PROFESSORS
Ariella Goodfriend

Why is this a bad idea?

● Tutors don’t claim to know more than professors do. A tutor’s purpose is not to teach
information--that’s the professor’s job. That being said, tutors can help their tutees find,
process/comprehend, and organize almost any/all information that they are working
with in relation to their professor-given assignment.

● Moreover, while college professors can provide plenty of information on

grammar/formatting/structure, many of them don’t.

● Hence, tutors retain the ability to assist students (at varying skill levels) as they navigate
through their writing processes.

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In order to perform to the best of their abilities, students should be encouraged to take advantage
of the academic resources--such as Writing Centers--that their respective campus offers.

In Stephen M. North’s essay, “The Idea of a Writing Center,” he strives to challenge and
reconstruct academia's various misperceptions surrounding writing centers. Through his own
professional experience, he has grown to believe that many educators (particularly in the English
Department) possess a deeply flawed, overall negative view of what a writing center is. In the
minds of such people, he writes: “A writing center is to illiteracy what a cross between Lourdes
and a hospice would be to serious illness: one goes there hoping for miracles, but ready to face
the inevitable” (435). In an effort to explain these misconstrued perspectives and their origins,
North proceeds to outline the historical trajectory of writing centers in practice, before finally
divulging his own pedagogy concerning writing centers at large. He believes that unlike the
“old” methods, “new” writing centers should view writing “as a process” and that all of their
writing-related tutoring should be “student-centered” (438). Moreover, North declares that the
universal mission of writing centers should be “to produce better writers, not better writing”
(438).
North regards writing centers as tools for students to utilize in their concentrated effort to
improve themselves as writers--not as one-stop shops for transforming their work into “A” grade
material. North believes that writing centers retain the power to help students (of all writing
levels/backgrounds) grow into becoming better writers. The tutor’s main focus is not to teach
course-related information, but rather to guide their tutees through their assignment’s
structure/presentation on said information.

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 Works Cited

North, Stephen M. “The Idea of a Writing Center.” College English, vol. 46, no. 5, 1984, pp. 433–446.
JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/377047.

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