September. 23, 2014
In my final observation at the Writing Center, a girl named Elizabeth came in also preparing to take the CATW Exam from a ENA 101 class. Her english wasn't good, because spanish is her first language but she came in with a positive vibe ready and willing to get help with her writing. She was given a article to read and summarize, using this assignment to practice for the CATW Exam. Even though this student was also in the same class as the last student from my observation, the professor was asking for different things from there assignment that helped them to get familiarized with the test.
I think that Elizabeth's professor gave her this assignment to practice as if she was taking the actual CATW Exam. As I seen all the tutors do throughout my observations, the tutor firstly read the assignment given and the article as well. He then discussed to the student how the CATW Exam is graded, showing her the rubric and everything that she had to do in order to get the full points on the test. The tutor mentioned something that stood out to me while he was discussing the CATW Exam to Elizabeth, he said that all of the students that take this test will have the same summary about the article but what stands out to the person grading the exam, is seeing how well the student is able to connect the idea of the article to their argument. I thought that was very important thought for students to have in mind when taking this test. The tutor also emphasized, that developing a good thesis statement about the main idea is important. It not only lets the reader know that you understand what you've read but it can also defend your thesis with examples. Elizabeth took a few quotes from the article mentioning them in her essay, but not explaining her reasons behind the quotes. The tutor explained how valuable it was to support your points with reasons behind it. Even if it maybe including personal examples.
In this tutoring session I noticed a technique used from the book Tutoring Writing by: Donald A. McAndrew about language and learning. According to McAndrew Vygotsky explains that students have a "level of potential development" where they work with the help of a coach or teacher to move beyond the point from what they can currently do. I felt that what McAndrew mentioned in his book really demonstrated what the tutor said and showed Elizabeth not only in this essay for the test but for future purposes.
The tutor helped Elizabeth develop her ideas not only to develop her thesis statement but the steps to having her essay stand out from all the other students taking this test. Even though English is not her first language and she has a difficult time with her grammar in English, I like how the tutor didn't solely go over grammar and spelling with her. He concentrated on helping her gather as much information about her essay knowing to support her ideas with explanations.
Out of the four observations that I have visited, this was the best one that I saw and really admired how the student left the Writing Center feeling so much more confident about her writing. For a tutor it must be a good feeling when you know you have helped someone. Thumbs up!
I'm glad that you had a good experience while sitting in with a tutor. What I liked most about your post was that you observed a very popular tutoring technique used perfectly. Everyone has potential, from someone who needs peer review or a student seeking advice from a teacher. As a future educator and English major, I honestly believe that when it comes to helping someone progress their thoughts and ideas on paper, it's always good to treat them with the same respect you would (i.e., someone who's fluent in English vs. someone who is ESL). By not judging the person based on their lack of skill in the English language, I'm sure Elizabeth left the writing center feeling much more confident and ready to pass her exam. By helping her brainstorm and come up with different types of ideas, Elizabeth now has many different approaches she can use to writer her topic, and if she has trouble articulating in English, she has many other ideas to fall back on (hopefully that won't be an issue though!)
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