What’s in a Name?
Paisley Keene
When I was preparing to become a peer-tutor in my writing center, one of the things that really stuck with me was Allison Hitt’s “Access for All: The Role of Dis/Ability in Multiliteracy Centers.” I know exactly where to find her article in my book because I’ve gone back to it many times. The end of her second paragraph problematizes the limits that had previously been put on writing centers, and in doing so, creates an amazing jumping-off point for considering the values fundamental to writing centers and the many implications they can have. At the end of her second paragraph, she says,
“Sherwood makes the argument that tutors are not trained for working with LD students,
while he simultaneously argues that writing centers are incapable of helping students with LD. Tanya Titchkosky identifies this impasse as a “You can’t accommodate everybody” attitude that identifies some students, particularly those with disabilities as ‘’naturally’ a problem for some spaces’” (Hitt 2, see also Titchkosky, Sherwood).
When she goes on to talk about everyone’s different literacies, I thought about the types of communication people use. You could replace the words “learning disabled” or “LD” in Hitt’s writing with anything, e.g. dance, science, math, ELL, new media etc. We may not be trained in any of those specific areas, but we are trained in effective communication and we are trained to be flexible.
Everyday in the writing center, we work with writers who have struggles and expertise different from our own. If we tried to define and limit the kinds work we do, we could end up losing the flexibility and outside perspectives we can offer as generalized tutors. The words I replaced LD with in my research were ‘new media.’ Admittedly, I had somewhat of a flawed view of what new media really meant. I was imagining it more as the most recent types of media we consume, such as the use of social media for marketing and news, when in reality it is mainly comprised of audio and visual media, such as photo, film, sound, and computer animation.
At the University of Maine, the new media major is basically split into two categories of classes: film and code. As a tutor, I know punctuation well, but would still be useless at placing brackets or semicolons or whatever else is used in code. The types of footage to be captured in the writing center is limited, and I don’t even understand half of the controls on my camera. So, what makes me think that writing center tutors, like myself, are qualified to offer help on this kind of work?
In doing a case study on where to focus when working with new media students in the writing center, I had some great conversations with a junior new media major which really brought to light a huge overlap in values held by their field of study and ours:
They write! Reflection is a huge portion of their classwork.
They work with peers! Group work and class critique are a must.
They get stuck! Writer’s block may be better named “artist’s block.”
They strive for effective communication! A visual narrative still has a story that must be carefully considered and planned to be received by an audience.
In reality, there is an abundance of material we can work on with these students without “stretching ourselves too thin.”
We don’t need specialized training to work with students on reflection, generating ideas, planning, or giving feedback. Just as we work with writers who are having trouble generating or feeling confident in their ideas, we can have enriching, creative discussions with new media students that may spark creativity and confidence.
Working so heavily with first-year students, in the writing center, on their English 101 portfolios, which include detailed requirements for critical reflection, we are practiced in the art of asking questions that prompt thoughtful reflection.
We are also taught to change the direction of a tutorial in order to best engage writers with different interests. Many of these methods involve visual, auditory, and kinesthetic techniques. All of which may be useful in an engaging story-boarding or outlining session with new media students.
One fundamental difference that I found between the disciplines of writing and new media was a very low occurrence of a traditional revision process. For the most part, projects in new media follow a format of Prompt – Create – Present – Critique – Move on. Critiques are often not used for reworking the same project, but for learning for the next one. Most revision happens during the student’s time to create – if they seek out feedback or hold themselves accountable for revising on their own. I find this to be a very rich opportunity for us to provide a test audience to students who wish to collaborate more with peers and are interested in finding any points in their work that could potentially confuse or mislead their audience. Because narrative is still an important aspect of new media, it is useful for students to know if the message they are sending aligns with the one they envisioned.
I would encourage writing center directors, administrators, and tutors to consider Hitt’s essay any time they find themselves thinking that working with a new group or idea is the challenge where they finally draw the line. Rather, look at where new work overlaps with the work you already do, and consider all the aspects you are qualified to take on. Odds are your input and encouragement will still be helpful in some way, even if the work involved doesn’t automatically strike you as “writing.” Maybe the name “Writing Center” appears to excuse us from such work, but maybe that just means it’s time to change the name.
References
Hitt, Allison. “Access for All: The Role of Dis/ability in Multiliteracy Centers” from Praxis: A
Writing Center Journal, 9.2 (2012).
Author’s Biography
Paisley Keene is a junior English major with a concentration in analytical writing and a minor in sustainable agriculture. Her work this year with her writing center has led to new experiences with undergraduate research in writing center studies, as well as attending the Northeast Writing Center Association 2019 conference. Her favorite things to do outside are hiking and gardening. She also enjoys cooking new recipes, hanging out with her cat, antiquing, painting, fashion, good music, and decorating.