As I was sitting in the Writers' Room last week I realized why I haven't ever spent time in there. You'd think that a senior English major would have at least taken some interest in a room dedicated to improving/helping/guiding/playing Socrates with a piece of literature but I never have. It's not because I don't think I need the help or that students don't need the help. It is because the room itself is helpless.
For example, I am going to write something and I think it needs to be looked at by someone else before I turn it in because I'm unsure about how to get started, do I want to take my paper to a comfortable room where I can relax and talk with someone personally about a project, or do I want to walk into a gray room with gray walls and gray tutors far away from the English dept. and feel pressured to make sure the time I spend with my tutor is used "effectively?" The latter is the feeling I got when I sat at a table in the middle of the room.
When I watched the consultants on duty deal with two ESL students last Thursday I understood why the room was so empty. ESL students are the only ones who aren't lying to themselves about the purpose/effectiveness of the room. They understand that if they walk into the Writers' Room they'll spend fifty minutes having someone read over their shoulder and edit for grammar and logic. "Oh yes, that's right," and, "Okay," are what I heard as the consultants plucked away at the keyboards for them.
While the consultants may have felt they were helping the students, all they were really doing is helping to ensure a better grade. This could be due, in part, by the fact that the Writers' Room is a good walk from the Liberal Arts building and that the separation puts English under the roof of other disciplines like Science and Math and both types of thinking don't mesh well for a room designed for colorful conversations about writing.
But what the Writers' Room really needs is some energy and some interpersonal dialogue. I'm not talking, "What are you doing this weekend?" or, "I like your hair." I'm talking more about free thinking and the free sharing of ideas. Even when I was talking with the consultants in the room, I didn't feel like they thought of me as their equal. Although they didn't know anything about me, they were still in the mood to fix things. If the attitude switched from fixing to helping, the room could make more use of itself, but as is, I don't blame students for wanting to shy away from the room.
When I went to the International Writing Center Association Summer Institute in Philly this July, one of the cool things we did was a session called "Trading Spaces." The writing center directors brought in photos of their centers, and we talked about how "space" - the physical set-up - of centers really does matter. I think it's interesting that you're making that connection here, between the institutional "look" of our center and its institutionally-centered feel. What I mean by that, I guess, is that it seems you have a sense that the writing consultants are focused on serving the institutional mission of "fixing" papers instead of the writing center mission of "helping" students become better writers. And you're pointing out that the gray walls, gray tables, metal bookshelves, and generally impersonal nature of the center may either be contributing to that atmosphere, or maybe reflective of it.
ReplyDeleteI like to see tutors take over their spaces. We didn't have a beautiful writing center where I tutored as an undergraduate/graduate student, but even our cramped, messy space was OURS. We brought in Scrabble, magnetic poetry, stuffed animals, coffee pots, snacks, posters, books, etc. It was the tutors' space, and we arranged that space to be as hospitable as possible to clients. We even had a bulletin board with our photos as the tutors and "quotes of the week". One great pastime was hunting down a good quote to put by your picture that week.
Anyway, I think this is interesting. (Do remember to engage the readings next time, though!)
I do not have any negative feelings for the physical environment of the center. But I do agree with you that atmosphere at the center is not really warm. I sometimes felt awkward being at the center.
ReplyDeleteMany students who have their paper "fixed" for grammatical mistakes experience the same thing. They are just told that this part is wrong and correct it into what. Once, I tried it out by myself. I brought my paper to the center. My experience was no different. Dozen of mistakes were found but I didn't get explanations why they were wrong. I tried to ask my tutor but that tutor seemed more interested in finishing my paper. Maybe, she had lots of homework too.
I kind of agree with your concept about the room needing some more free-spirited energy. There isn't much "sharing of ideas." I also find the atmosphere to be a bit unwelcoming. I don't know if it's so much the asthetics of the room as it is the business-like set up. That sheet that students fill out already make them feel like they are about to be evaluated. They know the consultant is recording their name, instructor, and progress on the assignment. That would make me feel uncomfortable right off the bat. I would prefer to just sit down and openly discuss my ideas and work, although I realize the documentation is important.
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